Roger Corman’s Horror Classics Vol. 1 DVD Review

Film Chest Media Group recently released a Roger Corman triple feature on DVD, and were kind enough to send me a copy to take a look at. Roger Corman’s Horror Classics Vol. 1 features three of Corman’s better known horror films–The Terror, Dementia 13 and A Bucket of Blood–all of which have received a brand new restoration from the original 35mm prints. The set is presented in widescreen with an aspect ratio of 16×9 and are in 5.1 stereo (except for A Bucket of Blood, which is mono).

All three of these Corman classics are in the public domain and readily available to watch online as well as being included in any number of Mill Creek sets, so it’s not as if getting your dirty paws on these movies is all too difficult. With that being said, the draw of this set is the fact that the films are restored, which might be a huge selling point for some horror fans.

^{Pop Flix’s release of A Bucket of Blood}

^{Roger Corman’s Horror Classics Vol. 1 release of A Bucket of Blood}

^{Pop Flix’s release of A Bucket of Blood}

^{Roger Corman’s Horror Classics Vol. 1 release of A Bucket of Blood}

I personally relish the world of uber cheap bulk DVD releases as the price/amount of movies vs. their picture quality tends to lean towards the former end of the scale for me. However, I fully support a nice restoration, and seeing a public domain movie be shown some love is quite the commendable effort in my eyes. Anyone can cash in, but not everyone is willing to put forth the effort to give these films their do justice.

Now, does this translate well with Roger Corman’s Horror Classic’s Vol 1? Well, the answer to that question is mostly. The Terror, A Bucket of Blood and Dementia 13 were indeed given a digital restoration, and while the films might be the best they’ve looked on home video, this collection isn’t quite the best it could be.

^{Pop Flix’s release of The Terror}

^{Roger Corman’s Horror Classics Vol. 1 release of The Terror}

^{Pop Flix’s release of The Terror}

^{Roger Corman’s Horror Classics Vol. 1 release of The Terror}

All three films certainly look much cleaner, clearer and have richer quality to them, and the widescreen presentation certainly makes for a nice improvement over the releases that I have seen (key words being “I have seen”). With that said, I do see signs of DNR (digital noise reduction) work on all three movies, which as seen in the screen grabs strewn throughout this post has negatively affected some of the film’s fine detail.  

^{Pop Flix’s release of Dementia 13}

^{Roger Corman’s Horror Classics Vol. 1 release of Dementia 13}

^{Pop Flix’s release of Dementia 13}

^{Roger Corman’s Horror Classics Vol. 1 release of Dementia 13}

DNR does drive some videophiles crazy, while others seem to be okay with it. Personally, I’m not a big fan of it, but I can deal with minor DNR, and it certainly isn’t a break for me in terms of this release. All three films featured in Roger Corman’s Horror Classics Vol. 1 do indeed look good, especially when you consider that all three of these movies were made on a very low-budget. Furthermore, I appreciate the fact that Film Chest took the time to show these movies a little love and care, giving them an overall solid release that fans of these films should enjoy.

*All of the comparison screen grabs are taken from my personal copy of Pop Flix’s Roger Corman Drive-In Collection, a set that contains ten films on four discs.

Bounty Killer DVD Giveaway Winner!

As you’ll quickly figure out by watching the video, I’ve done more than all the typing I want to do for the day, so I will simply let the video, err, speak for itself.

Congratulations to the lucky winner, and again, thanks to everyone who entered!

Dumpster Diving for Gold 4: EVER

Hey, look at this… a brand spanking new episode of Dumpster Diving for Gold (that I recorded in September), all ready to make sweet ass love to your very being. Yeah, I know, that's kind of gross.

In any event, I tried using a different camera to record this one, and it sort of worked, though there are some odd auto focus issues that make this shit seem as the video is breathing. Like, you might have an acid flashback from watching this. Or, if you're sensitive to bright colors and flashing lights, you might get all seizure on me, which would not be good because I depend on you for support.

Enjoy.

Some post video thoughts:

More favorite?

The pressure got to me, and my Boyka imitation blew. Ma bad.

Boy, I sure don't shut up, huh?

My ability to read out loud is horrific.

$2 Dollars Saved. Thanks Netflix!

I knew this email was on its way after reading about all of this nonsense online, so I was already pretty furious of such inevitable news from Netflix. I like having the one DVD sent to me, as that one DVD is what fills the void that Netflix's streaming service has in their library. But if you want to charge me an extra six bills a month to do so, then how about I save that money and rent the two or three new films I rent from the Redbox and still have a few beans left over to buy a taco and a delicious fountain drink?

I understand the fact that Netflix isn't quite making the profits they would like with the streaming/DVD bundle package, but to go and make such a bold price change is simply ridiculous. And sure, some of this money could be used towards investing into more content and a better service at some point, but the point is, this pisses people off and could very easily force many to jump ship entirely from the service. Especially with options such as Redbox and Hulu Plus being out there, with Hulu Plus being just as available as Netflix instant is.

Personally, I see a major benefit from the streaming service over the mailed-in DVDs, so that is where I will be going as of September 1st, and I assume many others will be sure to follow. If that's the case, Netflix not only loses a handful of subscribers, they will also be losing $2 of income from each and every person that drops the DVD plan altogether. That collectively could be a huge loss for the company, unless the ones that decide to keep both services can carry the rest. Either way, I will be losing something, sure, but I will also be saving $2 dollars a month, which is nice. Maybe I'll go to Bermuda.
 

Dumpster Diving for Gold III: The Quickening

The DVD dumpster gods have been kind to me as of late, which only gives me the opportunity to make yet another video where I shall successfully make an ass out of myself while telling you what I got. Enjoy.

Post video thoughts:

I neglected to mention that I spent a grand total of $16.85 on this batch of bad-ass.

Did I unwittingly sing an 'NSYNC song?

I'm straight killing that maroon V-Neck like it's no one's business.

Thankfully there was never an H.P. Lovecraft dildo made. But if there were, would it be called H.P.'s LoveCraft?

Boughten? Really?!

I put my cell on vibrate, yet, I neglected to ignore it?

Dumpster Diving for Gold Episode 2: DVD Finds

Once again I have returned to bring you yet another VLOG edition of Dumpster Diving for Gold. This time around I will be going over a handful of DVD finds that I recently made during my journeys to hell and back. Hope you like the video, and thanks ahead of time to anyone that actually takes the time to watch it!



Post video thoughts:

This video is so dark, white folk cross the street to avoid it.

I actually dip my toes in hot cocoa to keep them warm.

There is no way The ButterCream Gang will ever let me join with the filth that spills from my mouth.

I have since watched Ghost Dog, and I believe it might be one of my favorite films of all time. For realz.

That's all. Peace be with you.

Dumpster Diving For Gold: VHS VLOG

Vlog. How fucking hip.

Here it is folks, my very first ever video blog. I've always wanted to do one of these things, so it was just a matter of time before it would finally happen. While the video is a little cringe inducing to watch (for me, at least), I'm happy with how it came out, especially since I did it on the spur of the moment, in one take, with no prep whatsoever.

It's nothing special, just me talking some nonsense about a few VHS tapes I recently picked-up in the bowels of the earth.

Hope you bitches dig it.

A few quick post-video thoughts:

I touch my face. A lot.

This is not a 16:9 aspect ratio.

When I say conservative/catholic area, I am referring to the fact that the area I live in doesn't exactly equal horror, cult and exploitation cinema findings, unfortunately. There's a lot of digging, to say the least.

My hands move more than my mouth.

I think I might swear a little too much?

I neglected to mention that I don't like Crimewave all that much.

That's it. Thanks for watching, and I hope to do a few more of these things here and there, with a little more preparation, of course.

Baby Babble: House of Argento

I’ve had this $30 Amazon gift card burning a whole in my pocket since Christmas. Actually, it wasn’t in my pocket and the hole is only there to do a little undercover scratching if need be and the burning is more than likely related to that scratching, but I digress. I have been holding on to it for a few months now and I finally buckled after seeing that James Gracey’s upcoming Argento book, Dario Argento was on pre-order sale for under $14 bucks, which is a fucking steal if you ask me. I have mentioned the book more than once here on this blog, and I’m very excited that it’s finally on the horizon, so I encourage everyone with the love of Argento in their hearts to head over to Amazon and pre-order that shit! On a related side note, there is an awesome interview with the book’s author, James over at Fascination With Fear, so give it a read when you’ve got a moment.

As I said, the book was only like $14 greenbacks, so I had some more money to spend, plus I wanted to save on shipping. Back when it released a few weeks ago, I almost used the gift card to buy The House of the Devil DVD/VHS pack, but resisted mainly because it cost $30 bucks and I didn’t want to blow my whole gift card load in one shot. Still, I have been wanting to see the movie wicked bad, and when I saw it was on sale for the slightly lower price of $25 beans, I buckled. I rarely blind buy, especially for such an amount, but knowing my taste, I should enjoy the film. If not, heads will roll. Hopefully I’ll get the movie soon so I can review it and say I liked it even if I didn’t, just so I don’t look like a chump who’s $25 poorer!

I know my Amazon purchases must be fascinating, but what IS fascinating is the trailer for the upcoming Belgian film, Amer which I bumped into over at Twitch. Maybe I just didn’t notice (which is probably the case), but I haven’t heard much about this movie which is described as a Neo-Giallo film from Helene Cattet and Bruno Forzani. One look at this trailer, and I am filled with anticipation and am looking forward to checking this one out as soon as possible.

It looks funny, but plays fine.

So it all comes full circle…House of the Devil is a throwback to 80’s Satanic films, Amer is a throwback to classic Gialli, and Dario Argento is about a director of Gialli.

Vengeance Will Be Mine!!

And in completely fucking awesome news, over at Twitch I found the goods on Palisades Tartan's official release for the super duper 8 disc box set of Park Chan-wook's Vengeance Trilogy!! It is set to come out on November 24th which is way sooner than I expected, and it will certainly be on my Christmas list, but chances are I will not be able to wait that long! This is the definitive set of the holy revenge trilogy and will feature everything found on all other releases of the three films plus a slew of added awesomeness! In case you do not know, the trilogy consists of: Sympathy For Mr. Vengeance (2002), Oldboy (2003), and the third film Lady Vengeance (aka Sympathy For Lady Vengeance 2005). A trilogy of films in theme only, and that theme is VENGEANCE!

Here are just some of the extras announced for this über set...

Each film is recorded in their original language (Korean) and offer English and Spanish subtitles. Each title is presented in anamorphic widescreen, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound and DTS Surround Sound 5.1.Special features include an essay on each film by celebrated filmmakers, actors and writers, including Eli Roth... Additional features include but are not limited to Audio commentary by Park Chan-Wook and actor Ryoo Seung-wan (SYMPATHY FOR MR. VENGEANCE), Behind the Scenes, The Process of Mr. Vengeance, My Boksu Story, Storyboards, Photo Gallery, Filmographies, Film Notes, Crew Interviews, Three Audio Commentaries (OLDBOY), 5 Behind the Scene featurettes, Le Grand Prix at Cannes, Deleted Scenes with commentary, Regular and Fade-To-White versions (LADY VENGEANCE), Character Interviews - Lee Geum Ja, Prof. Baek, Prisoners, Families, Lady Vengeance at the 62nd Venice Film Festival, Trailer, Film Notes, Making of and Deleted Scenes.

And that is just what they are telling us for now - who knows what surprises we have in store! I cannot wait to see every little extra to be found on this amazing set, and I will happily spend the time to engulf myself in every detail of some of the finest cinema ever put to celluloid, for as long as I can before I start seeing ants of my own! I've said it before, and I'll say it again, I love these films, and Sympathy For Mr. Vengeance is right there as one of my top two favorite films of all time. Don't front, it is a movie that deserves more than a couple of viewings to truly appreciate the masterpiece that is Mr. Vengeance. At one point, it was even my least favorite of the trilogy, so that says something about the film's strength after multiple sit throughs.

Possibly the one thing I am most excited for is the "Fade-to-White" version of Lady Vengeance...I had heard about this before and it is a mesmerizing idea to say the least. I can only wonder how this technique will effect a film that almost moves in a way like water that is slowly boiling down to the point where there is nothing left. I am so pumped for this to come out on November 24th and my calendar is marked with a wad of excitement! I just hope it is reasonably priced...I would guess between $50-$80 bucks, which would be a great price for all you are getting in the set. It would be great if it weren't too much over than that price range...I would hate to lose out on any other Christmas presents because it's too expensive!