Great Warner Horror/Sci-Fi titles up for pre-order for 8/6. (1 Viewer)

[Jay E]

2 things:

Has Michael Caine done a commentary for any other films?

I also want to bump this as I already see 3 other threads have started about these films. Hopefully we can condense them into this one thread.

 

[David Lawrence]

The Region 2 release of Mike Hodges' "Get Carter" features a commentary with Caine, Hodges and Cinematographer Wolfgang Suschitzky, all recorded separately from one another. I'd be very surprised if the R1 release didn't have the same track included.
"Wolfen," "Time After Time" and "Gremlins" will more than likely be pre-orders for me; the rest will go on my list to buy at a later date

 

[Eric Paddon]

I'd be very surprised if Caine talks the entire length of the film. I have a feeling it would be more like the Jack Lemmon commentary on "Mister Roberts" and Charlton Heston on "Ben Hur" where it's partial and then we get guided by the chapters to the next point where he talks.

 

[Roderick Gauci]

The Warner 'horror' titles for 8/6 include several which I had been first exposed to when very young: THE SWARM, TIME AFTER TIME and WOLFEN on Italian TV, the GREMLINS films on PAL VHS, and CLASH OF THE TITANS - among the very first films I watched on the big screen!
While none of the above can be called truly great films, they all managed, in their own way, to provide healthy entertainment for audiences, tinged with a touch of nostalgia, which is what they had set out to do in the first place.
CLASH OF THE TITANS follows hard on the heels of a spate of Ray Harryhausen DVDs recently released (or announced) by Columbia: THE THREE WORLDS OF GULLIVER (1960), THE FIRST MEN IN THE MOON (1964) and the upcoming TWENTY MILLION MILES TO EARTH (1957). Probably the only one I will get in the near future is THE FIRST MEN IN THE MOON, but I would heartily encourage Columbia to re-issue JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS (1963), perhaps Harryhausen's greatest achievement, with all the Criterion LD supplements intact. I would also welcome a DVD release of EARTH VS. THE FLYING SAUCERS (1956) and MYSTERIOUS ISLAND (1961). And while we're on the subject, we need a Special Edition of JACK THE GIANT KILLER (1962) - courtesy of MGM/UA (?) - the best film Harryhausen never made!
It strikes me as somewhat bizarre that both Michael Caine and Albert Finney will be taking part in an Audio Commentary on THE SWARM and WOLFEN respectively - two films of which they surely cannot be too proud! Still, I would be interested in hearing whatever they have to say about their experiences on these atypical (for them) films. Yet we have not been treated to a similar privilige on DVDs of their greatest successes: Caine did record one for GET CARTER (1971) but not for THE IPCRESS FILE (1965), ALFIE (1966) or SLEUTH (1972), while Finney's SATURDAY NIGHT AND SUNDAY MORNING (1960) and TOM JONES (1963) were, unaccountably, bare-bones releases. What should we expect next - a Michael Caine Commentary on JAWS - THE REVENGE (1987) or an Albert Finney one on ANNIE (1982)?
I have watched GREMLINS numerous times but I only managed to catch its sequel once. Therefore, I am glad that these delightful and endearing movies are being given such a lavish treatment on DVD. Who knows, maybe I may give in to the temptation and acquire myself a copy, along with Joe Dante's PIRANHA (1978) and THE HOWLING (1980) - when the rumored Special Edition of the latter finally appears!
The DVD release of TIME AFTER TIME is timely (sic) in view of the recent theatrical release of FROM HELL and THE TIME MACHINE. We now need DVDs of A STUDY IN SCARLET (1965), HANDS OF THE RIPPER (1971) and MURDER BY DECREE (1979) - the latter currently "in production" at Anchor Bay. It is great that TIME AFTER TIME will feature a full-length Audio Commentary by both Malcolm McDowell and David Warner and that alone earns it a place on my "to buy" list. It is an even greater pity, then, that they were not invited to record one for their most infamous films: A CLOCKWORK ORANGE (1971) and MORGAN! (1966), respectively! Let's hope McDowell will be involved in a Commentary on Paramount's proposed DVD of Lindsay Anderson's IF....(1968) and its ambitous sequel, O LUCKY MAN! (1973) - owned by Warners and languishing in DVD limbo as I write!
I watched EXORCIST II: THE HERETIC only a couple of years ago. The release of this film signals another missed opportunity for Warners, unless they care to rectify the situation by the time the DVD hits the streets: I'm referring to the lack of an Audio Commentary by director John Boorman and the omission of the 110-minute revised cut of the film. Terrible as the film may be - perhaps the director's worst but NOT his only failure (LEO THE LAST [1969], ZARDOZ [1973]) - a Special Edition would have increased its chances of being "embraced" by people who were hugely disappointed by it on first viewing, and Boorman's comments could well lead us to look at the film in a new and totally different light. Recently, for example, I purchased the Anchor Bay DVD of Andrzej Zulawski's personal and pretentious POSSESSION (1981), another much maligned and misunderstood horror film. To be perfectly honest, I hated the film as I was watching it but Zulawski's Commentary, which I listened to soon after, changed my views somewhat and, by the end, I had only respect for this particular director's vision!
Another thing regarding EXORCIST II: the news that it will be released on Region 1 DVD appeared only days after I read that a Box Set will be coming out on 10/14/02 in the U.K. comprising all three EXORCIST films (see: http://www.hometheaterforum.com/htfo...light=exorcist)! There is no mention of supplements for any of the titles (or whether the first one will be the standard or the extended version), but I also hope that THE EXORCIST III will be revisited to include writer-director William Peter Blatty's Commentary.

 

[SteveGon]

Ah, just in time for my birthday! I'll be picking up most of those...

 

[DaViD Boulet]

Still waiting for "Day of the Triffids..."

 

[Keith Helms]

One of the best scifi films of the 50s is coming on the 21st. It Came From Outer Space is remarkable in that the aliens who crashlanded on earth weren't here to suck our brains out, they just wanted to fix their ship and get the hell out of here! Can't say I blame them!

 

[Derek M Germano]

"Still waiting for "Day of the Triffids..."

David, you and me both! Wish Anchor Bay would do it in 16:9 enhanced wide screen.

 

[Jay E]

I have the region 2 DVD of Day of the Triffids. It's a nice widescreen, 2.35:1, transfer, (non-anamorphiv however), and I recommend it to anyone who has a multi-region player.

 

[JulianK]

The Region 2 Day of the Triffids disc is a pretty poor effort. It looks very much like the same transfer used on the company's VHS release (ie: a PAL standards conversion from an NTSC master). I even suspect that the company used the NTSC laserdisc to master it from.
The disc also has some serious lipsync problems, although these may be more-or-less apparent on some players.

 

[Don Peskin]

Just preordered from DVDEmpire

Clash of the Titans

Them

Time After Time

Gremlins 1 and 2

for 13.99 each.

V: The Final Battle for 17.49

 

[Randy_M]

My order is in for V:The Final Battle, Them! and Clash of the Titans.

Hope there's more to come!

 

[Jeremiah W]

FYI gremlins 1 & 2 are up for preorder at Deepdsicountdvd.com for 13.49 each

 

[Sally Hardesty]

Great news....my girlfriend & i will most likely be purchasing most of those titles.

Does anyone know what version of Gremlins 2 will be released? I sure hope they include both 'breakdown' sequences via seamless branching.

The Swarm,what a laugh riot. A must have for me.

The Exorcist II,see above reply.

Them,now thats a real classic. Always been a favorite of ours as well as V:The Final Battle.