More WB classics announced for August. (1 Viewer)

[Herb Kane]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
PRESS RELEASE ATTACHED
Banned, Forbidden, Condemned...

Freaks...And More Horror Classics Coming to DVD

Tod Browning's Masterpiece and Four Other Scary Favorites Debut on DVD August 10 from

Warner Home Video

Hair-raising extras include alternate endings, documentaries, commentaries, and more


Burbank, Calif. May 4, 2004 - The only thing horror fans will have to fear this summer is fear itself: On August 10 Warner Home Video (WHV) debuts on DVD the forbidden and once banned masterpiece Freaks, along with four other classic horror favorites including The Bad Seed, Dead Ringer, Village of the Damned and its sequel Children of the Damned (latter two on one disc). All four DVDs will sell for $19.97 SRP.

Freaks (1932) - This classic from horror master Tod Browning (Dracula) was first released in 1932, but subsequently banned in England for more than 30 years because of its controversial casting and portrayal of real people with grotesque physical deformities. In the 1960s Freaks developed a huge cult following at midnight shows. Even today, it retains its power to transfix an audience. Freaks features the "living torso" Prince Radian, Siamese twins Daisy and Violet Hilton, half-bodied Johnny Eck, "pinheads" Elvira and Jenny Lee Snow and others. Plot involves an exquisite looking but cold-hearted high-wire artist (Olga Baclanova) who marries a wealthy circus performer (little person Harry Earles), and then schemes with her bodybuilder lover (Henry Victor) to poison her husband in order to inherit his wealth. The group of "freaks" seeks revenge and gets even with the high-wire artist.

On DVD, Freaks has been remastered from rare nitrate film elements to improve image and audio quality. Bonus materials will include:

Three alternate endings
All-new documentary, Freaks: Sideshow Cinema
Commentary by David J. Skal, author of "Dark Carnival: The Secret World of Tod Browning, Hollywood's Master of the Macabre"
Special message prologue added for the theatrical reissue
The Bad Seed (1956) - Nancy Kelly and Patty McCormack star in this tale of suspense based on the Maxwell Anderson Broadway play about a woman who appears to have it all: a wonderful home, a husband who adores her and a seemingly ideal daughter -- who turns out to have an "inherited evil" which results in the deaths of several people. "A spellbinding account [with] fine performances," says critic Leonard Maltin.

Patty McCormack, the first child actor ever given such a deliberately evil role on film, earned a Best Supporting Actress Oscar® nomination for her effort.

Bonus material will include:

Commentary by Patty McCormack and actor/playwright Charles Busch
New making-of documentary, Enfant Terrible: A Conversation with Patty McCormack
Theatrical trailer
Dead Ringer (1964) - Bette Davis plays twin sisters for 'double trouble.' Edith Phillips (Davis), because of a longtime grudge over a man, kills and then takes on the identity of her wealthy twin sister Margaret (Davis again). Karl Malden, Peter Lawford co-star in the movie which was directed by Davis's 1940s leading man, Paul Henreid.

Bonus material will include:

Commentary by actor/playwright Charles Busch and "Bette Davis Speaks" author, Boze Hadleigh
All-new documentary, Double Take: Bette vs. Bette
Vintage Featurette, Behind-the-Scenes at the Doheny Mansion
Theatrical trailer
Village of the Damned (1960) - In Midwich, a small English village, every citizen falls into a deep, strange sleep in the middle of the day. Months later all the young women are pregnant and their resulting children show little emotion and have strange penetrating eyes that seem to make people do things against their will. George Sanders, Barbara Shelley, Michael Gwynne and Laurence Naismith star in the movie directed by Wolf Rilla. Leonard Maltin calls it "an eerie well-made thriller."

Children of the Damned (1963) - Sequel to Village of the Damned is about scientists who discover five children, each with an inordinate amount of intelligence. The children are flown to London to be studied, but they escape and wreak havoc.

The Village of the Damned and Children of the Damned double-feature DVD will include the following bonus materials:

Village of the Damned commentary by "Chronicles of Terror: Silent Screams" author Steve Haberman
Children of the Damned commentary by screenwriter John Briley
Theatrical trailers
August Horror DVD Debut Quartet

$19.97 SRP (Per title)
All films in Black & White
Street Date: August 10

 

[ChrisBEA]

Very cool.
Looking forward to Freaks, been wanting to see that for a long time. ANd the Damned films.

 

[Craig Beam]

One of us... One of us... One of us...

Can't wait!

 

[Jeff_HR]

I'm glad to see there will be commentaries on "Freaks" & "The Bad Seed". I'm interested in the running time of "Freaks". The other extras look nice. I can hardly wait.

 

[Jim Barg]

For a moment there after reading the thread title, I was hoping WB was going to announce the Forbidden Planet SE. Freaks, however, looks like a nice substitute...

 

[Paul_Scott]

yeah, i thought FP was on the schedule for August?

haven't ever seen the Bad Seed or the Damned flicks, so now looks to be the perfect opportunity.
Freaks will probably also get purchased, although i'm fairly indifferent on it.
i don't mind a purchase to encourage similar releases in the future- Warner is one of the few studios thats spurs that feeling in me.

 

[Patrick McCart]

Gooble Gobble!

I'll be getting the Freaks DVD, for sure... I'm not sure about the others, though.

The David J. Skal commentary ought to be great... his commentaries for the Universal horror films and his documentaries are top-notch.

Can't resist... "ONE OF US! ONE OF US!"

 

[Jeff_HR]

I'm in agreement. Perhaps the FP announcement will follow soon, but these will keep me busy.

 

[Brook K]

Can't wait to own Freaks. Kudos to Warners for putting together what looks to be a very nice package of extras for it. And they don't charge an arm and a leg either.

 

[Roger Rollins]

I will buy ALL of these. They are all favorites, but FREAKS and THE BAD SEED are among the titles I've most hoped for on DVD. Way to go WB!

 

[Justin_S]

Very nice to finally have dates and specs for these releases! Freaks is the one I'm most excited for, as I adore the film big time, and have been waiting too long for it. The extras sound wonderful! I also love The Bad Seed, and will definitely get it as well.

 

[oscar_merkx]

wow great news indeed. Very interested in Freaks & Dead Ringer, sounds like WB have outdone themselves again.

I am sure FP will come later in the year

 

[Jay E]

I'll be buying all of them, but Freaks and the Village of the Damned double feature are the stand-outs for me. Happy to see Warner go that extra step in creating extras for these. They are really doing a great job!

Now if only Universal would get the message.

 

[Eric Peterson]

I'll be picking up the majority of these titles. I'm really anxious to see how the new Freaks transfer looks. Thanks again WB.

 

[MarcoBiscotti]

So are these all double-disc S.E.?

Also, can anyone offer advice on which version of Dead Ringers to pick up... obviously none of us have seen the new transfer yet, but how did the Criterion disc look and in terms of extras and features, is Criterion still the definitive version to go for?

 

[John Hodson]

Marco - Criterion's Dead Ringers is quite a different film to Warners Dead Ringer, and the SRP would suggest these are not double discs.

---
So many films, so little time...

 

[MarcoBiscotti]

Oh woops, I didn't even read the descriptions - these are different films altogether?

Is this "Dead Ringer" worth looking into?

 

[John Hodson]

Dead Ringers = David Cronenberg / Jeremy Irons, Dead Ringer = Paul Henreid / Bette Davis, and yes, the extras alone would make this a worthwhile buy and it is a decent film too.

---
So many films, so little time...

 

[Lyle H.]

It may be well known by now that Freaks (1932) is my all-time favorite film, and the joy that I am feeling right now that this has been officially announced (with extras, no less!) is indescribable. Hopefully, there is restored footage (the film was originally 90-minutes long) and at the very least, a remastered transfer. I'm sure all of you know how painful it/was is to not have your favorite film on DVD, so you know the joy that one feels when it is announced to arrive on DVD. This press release made my day, Herb. Thanks.

I can't wait to listen to the commentary by David J. Skal. He is one of my favorite authors, and I own both Dark Carnival (I remember finding this at Tower a few months after I saw Freaks for the first time, and reading it from cover-to-cover; not fully understanding everything, I was only 9 years old at the time!) and The Monster Show (Which I am currently reading at the time, great book!) and I loved Skal's commentary for Dracula (1931); this is just great news. Hopefully one of these days I'll be able to meet Skal (He was actually at a Chiller Theatre Show I attended, but I must have missed him! :frowning and talk about horror films with him. The man really is a wealth of knowlege. I also hope the documentary is over 30-minutes. I have Image's Sideshow: Life on the Inside documentary, one of my favorites ever since it aired on TLC 8 years ago. 3 ALTERNATE ENDINGS??!?!?!?!?!?! Holy sh*t!!! THAT is drool-worthy news. Wow. Wow, wow, wow, wow, wow.

 

[Will K]

Freaks?! Best news I've heard all week. That line-up is pretty kick-ass! I love me some Warner lately.