Blue Underground

The Final Countdown (Widescreen Edition)

With a tantalizing "what-if?" scenario and a respectable cast of Hollywood veterans, The Final Countdown plays like a grand-scale episode of The Twilight Zone. It's really no more than that, and time-travel movies have grown far more sophisticated since this popular 1980 release, but there's still some life remaining in the movie's basic premise: What if a modern-era Navy aircraft carrier--in this case the real-life nuclear-powered U.S.S. Nimitz--was caught in an anomalous storm and thrust 40 years backwards in time to the eve of Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor? Will the ship's commander (Kirk Douglas) interfere with history? Will the visiting systems analyst (Martin Sheen) convince him not to? Will a rescued senator from 1941 (Charles Durning) play an unexpected role in the future of American politics? Veteran TV director Don Taylor doesn't do much with the ideas posed by this potentially intriguing plot; he seems more interested in satisfying aviation buffs with loving footage of F-14 "Jolly Roger" fighter jets, made possible by the Navy's generous cooperation. That makes The Final Countdown a better Navy film than a full-fledged time-travel fantasy, but there's a nice little twist at the end, and the plot holes are easy to ignore. James Cameron would've done it better, but this popcorn thriller makes an enjoyable double-bill with The Philadelphia Experiment. --Jeff Shannon

Suspiria (2-Disc Special Edition)

Jessica Harper (PHANTOM OF THE PARADISE) stars as Suzy Banyon a young American ballet dancer who arrives at a prestigious European dance academy run by the mysterious Madame Blanc (Joan Bennett of DARK SHADOWS) and Miss Tanner (Alida Valli of KILLER NUN). But when a series of bizarre incidents and horrific crimes (including what Entertainment Weekly calls the most vicious murder scene ever filmed ) turn the school into a waking nightmare of the damned Suzy must escape the academy s unspeakable secret of supernatural evil.Experience the most shocking and hallucinatory horror movie in history as you ve never seen or heard it before now featuring the fully remastered landmark score by Goblin and a heart-stopping new film transfer supervised by cinematographer Luciano Tovoli. This is the definitive version of Dario Argento s SUSPIRIA an aria of terror beyond imagination and one of the most extraordinary horror films ever made.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: HORROR UPC: 827058201391 Manufacturer No: BU2013

Outside of devoted cult audiences, many Americans have yet to discover the extremely stylish, relentlessly terrifying Italian horror genre, or the films of its talented virtuoso, Dario Argento. Suspiria, part one of a still-uncompleted trilogy (the luminously empty Inferno was the second), is considered his masterpiece by Argento devotees but also doubles as a perfect starting point for those unfamiliar with the director or his genre. The convoluted plot follows an American dancer (Jessica Harper) from her arrival at a European ballet school to her discovery that it's actually a witches coven; but, really, don't worry about that too much. Argento makes narrative subservient to technique, preferring instead to assault the senses and nervous system with mood, atmosphere, illusory gore, garish set production, a menacing camera, and perhaps the creepiest score ever created for a movie. It's essentially a series of effectively unsettling set pieces--a raging storm that Harper should have taken for an omen, and a blind man attacked by his own dog are just two examples--strung together on a skeleton structure. But once you've seen it, you'll never forget it. --Dave McCoy

Inferno

The Master Of Horror Dario Argento Brings You Terror That s Hotter Than Hell!A young woman stumbles upon a mysterious diary that reveals the secrets of The Three Mothers and unleashes a nightmare world of demonic evil. As the unstoppable horror spreads from Rome to New York City this unholy trinity must be stopped before the world is submerged in the blood of the innocent.Written and directed by Dario Argento INFERNO is considered to be the sequel to his classic SUSPIRIA. This surreal shocker stars Irene Miracle (NIGHT TRAIN MURDERS) Daria Nicolodi (DEEP RED) and Leigh McCloskey (DALLAS) and features a pulse-pounding original score by Keith Emerson of Emerson Lake & Palmer. Now transferred from the original vault negative materials INFERNO contains visually stunning sequences of horror that Argento fans consider among the best of his career.Extras:Interview with Writer/Director Dario ArgentoTheatrical TrailerStill GalleryTalent BiosSystem Requirements:Run Time: 106 minsFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: HORROR Rating: NR UPC: 827058110396 Manufacturer No: 1039

Dario Argento's sequel to Suspiria, his first and to date only American hit, is an even more incoherent nightmare fantasy. Laden with symbolic imagery and fantastic explosions of death shot in candy-colored hues, it's a bloody feast for the eyes. Mark (Leigh McCloskey), an American music student in Rome, rushes home to New York after a frantic phone call from his sister only to find an empty apartment and obscure clues about a supernatural presence in her spooky building. It all has something to do with the mysterious Mater Tenebrarum, one of the "Three Mothers" of Argento's murky mythology, and the fun house of an apartment house she inhabits, complete with a fully furnished underwater ballroom, miles of secret tunnels flooded in red and blue light, and hidden passageways under the floorboards. Meanwhile, there's a killer running around stabbing beautiful women for who knows what reason, a crippled bookseller attacked by rats, and a homicidal hot-dog vendor in Central Park. Why? It's best not to ponder such mysteries--Argento obviously isn't as concerned with making sense of his meticulously staged murders as he is with lighting them with just the right hue. Dramatically it's inert, a parade of quirky but faceless victims dispatched with elaborate care, but it's beautifully designed and executed, a spectacle of elaborate set pieces and magnificent decor orchestrated with a complete disdain for narrative logic. --Sean Axmaker

Deep Red

Dario Argento s Masterpiece In It s Full-Length Director s Cut!An English jazz pianist living in Rome witnesses the brutal hatchet murder of a renowned psychic and is quickly drawn into the savage crime. With the help of a tenacious female reporter the pair track a twisted trail of deranged clues and relentless violence towards a shocking climax that has ripped screams from the throats of audiences for more than 30 years!DEEP RED stars David Hemmings (BLOW-UP) and Daria Nicolodi (PHENOMENA TENEBRE) and is widely considered by both fans and critics alike to be Dario Argento s true masterpiece. Now with the cooperation of the maestro himself this classic shocker is presented in its full-length Director s Cut remixed in 5.1 Dolby Digital uncut and uncensored for the first time ever!Extras: 25th Anniversary FeaturetteItalian Theatrical TrailerU.S. Theatrical TrailerTalent BiosSystem Requirements:Run Time: 126 mins Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: HORROR UPC: 827058107099 Manufacturer No: 709

The Prowler

Maniac

Frank Zito (a career performance by co-writer/ co-executive producer Joe Spinell of Rocky and The Godfather fame) is a deeply disturbed man haunted by the traumas of unspeakable childhood abuse. And when these horrific memories begin to scream inside his mind Frank prowls the seedy streets of New York City to stalk and slaughter innocent young women. Now Frank has begun a relationship with a beautiful photographer (Caroline Munro) of The Spy Who Loved Me) yet his vile compulsions remain. These are the atrocities of a human monster. This is the story of a Maniac.Experience Maniac like you've never seen or heard it before. Directed by William Lustig (Maniac Cop Vigilante) and featuring landmark gore effects by Tom Savini (Dawn of the Dead) this notorious classic was censored all over the world for its graphic violence and remains banned in England and Germany to this day. But Maniac is more than just one of the most relentlessly depraved films of our time; it is quite possibly one of the most disturbing horror movies ever made.Features:The Joe Spinell StoryTheatrical TrailersTV SpotsRadio SpotsPoster & Still GalleryGallery Of OutrageTalent BiosAudio Commentary with Co-Producer/Director William Lustig Special Make-Up Effects Artist Tom Savini Editor Lorenzo Marinelli and Joe Spinell's Assistant Luke WalterRadio Interview with Co-Producer/Director William Lustig and Stars Joe Spinell & Caroline MunroSystem Requirements:Run Time: 88 mins Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: HORROR Rating: NR UPC: 827058102490 Manufacturer No: 1024

Fire and Ice (2-Disc Limited Edition)

The mighty-muscled heroes and big-bottomed babes of fantasy artist Frank Frazetta inspired animator Ralph Bakshi (Fritz the Cat, Wizards) to create the swords-and-sorcery epic Fire and Ice. Bakshi uses a technique called rotoscoping, which uses live-action film of actors as the template for animation, allowing him to put realistic action into fantastic environments. The verisimilitude of movement in a cartoon can be startling, but that's about all Fire and Ice has to offer; the wafer-thin story, overwrought characters, and clumsy dialogue are vapid cliches. Of much greater interest are the extras in this two-disc set, including a making-of feature that demonstrates the painstaking process of rotoscoping; enthusiastic commentary from Bakshi, who's a jovial, down-to-earth guy with a thick Brooklyn accent; deliriously fatuous diary notes from one of the actors; and a feature-length documentary called Frazetta: Painting with Fire, which reveals the artist to be more intriguing than any of the barbarians he's famous for. The effusive praise of other fantasy artists and "Frazetta historians" occasionally veers into Spinal Tap territory, but it's fascinating watching Frazetta turn from a 1950s James-Dean-style tough guy into the king of fantasy art. Though his work is often dismissed as adolescent kitsch, the documentary persuasively argues that Frazetta deservedly dominates his corner of the art world. --Bret Fetzer

From The Director Of The Original Animated LORD OF THE RINGS And The Illustrator Of CONAN THE BARBARIAN

It began as a once-in-a-lifetime collaboration between two of the greatest icons of the fantasy genre: Controversial animator Ralph Bakshi (director of FRITZ THE CAT, WIZARDS and the original THE LORD OF THE RINGS) and legendary illustrator Frank Frazetta (creator of the iconic CONAN THE BARBARIAN, VAMPIRELLA and Edgar Rice Burroughs book covers). It became - and remains - one of the most startling animation epics of all time. Now experience a world unlike any ever seen, where savage warriors, horrific monsters and luscious maidens battle for the soul of a civilization in a time of good and evil, pleasure and pain, and FIRE & ICE

This long-unavailable cult favorite has been remastered in High Definition from the original vault materials, remixed in stunning 6.1 DTS-ES and 5.1 Dolby Digital Surround EX, and loaded with exciting Extras.

Disc 2 contains FRAZETTA: PAINTING WITH FIRE, the acclaimed 93 minute documentary that explores the remarkable life and career of the man who changed fantasy art forever.

Archer Winsten, NEW YORK POST
"Fantastic Monsters, Nightmarish Visions And Gobs Of Action!"

The Final Countdown (Full Screen Edition)

With a tantalizing "what-if?" scenario and a respectable cast of Hollywood veterans, The Final Countdown plays like a grand-scale episode of The Twilight Zone. It's really no more than that, and time-travel movies have grown far more sophisticated since this popular 1980 release, but there's still some life remaining in the movie's basic premise: What if a modern-era Navy aircraft carrier--in this case the real-life nuclear-powered U.S.S. Nimitz--was caught in an anomalous storm and thrust 40 years backwards in time to the eve of Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor? Will the ship's commander (Kirk Douglas) interfere with history? Will the visiting systems analyst (Martin Sheen) convince him not to? Will a rescued senator from 1941 (Charles Durning) play an unexpected role in the future of American politics? Veteran TV director Don Taylor doesn't do much with the ideas posed by this potentially intriguing plot; he seems more interested in satisfying aviation buffs with loving footage of F-14 "Jolly Roger" fighter jets, made possible by the Navy's generous cooperation. That makes The Final Countdown a better Navy film than a full-fledged time-travel fantasy, but there's a nice little twist at the end, and the plot holes are easy to ignore. James Cameron would've done it better, but this popcorn thriller makes an enjoyable double-bill with The Philadelphia Experiment. --Jeff Shannon

Goodbye Uncle Tom

It was advertised as The first motion picture based on historical facts about the rise and revolt of slavery in America. It became one of the most reviled and misunderstood films of its time. Written edited produced and directed by Gualtiero Jacopetti and Franco Prosperi this epic recreation of the American slave trade atrocities was both condemned as depraved exploitation and acclaimed as an unprecedented cry of Black anguish and rage. The Detroit Chronicle hailed it as a graphic moving nerve-paralyzing film. Legendary film critic Pauline Kael called it the most specific and rabid incitement of the race war. Three decades cannot diminish GOODBYE UNCLE TOM s impact or quiet its controversy.This is the complete 123-minute English Version of GOODBYE UNCLE TOM fully restored from the original vault negatives loaded with incredible Extras and now presented totally uncut uncensored and virtually unseen since its abortive theatrical release more than 30 years ago.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: DOCUMENTARIES/BIOGRAPHY UPC: 827058101592 Manufacturer No: 827058101592

City of the Living Dead

The Seven Gates Of Hell have been torn open and in three days the dead shall rise and walk the earth. As a reporter (Christopher George of Pieces) and a psychic (Catriona MacColl of The Beyond) race to close the portals of the damned they encounter a seething nightmare of unspeakable evil. The city is alive - with the horrors of the living dead!Directed and co-written by the legendary Lucio Fulci (Zombie The Beyond) City Of The Living Dead features some of the maestro's most shocking and controversial sequences of all time. This is the definitive version of Fulci's hallucinogenic masterpiece of horror: uncut uncensored and presented in all its brain-ripping gut-spewing head-drilling glory!Features:Theatrical TrailerStill GalleryRadio SpotsLucio Fulci BioSystem Requirements:Run Time: 93 minsFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: HORROR Rating: NR UPC: 827058105293 Manufacturer No: 1052