 The following Blu-ray was provided to me by Warner Brothers for review. Thoughts and opinions are my own.
When I was 12 I went and saw Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure. I loved it funny, juvenile, and if you got back and watch it, surprisingly innocent. In fact the film was rated PG which was unusual for the time as most Teen comedies had the hard R rating slapped on them. Bill and Ted was the story of two friends who traveled through time picking up historical figures to pass a history exam. It was crucial they pass, because if Ted failed he would be sent to military school thus breaking up their band, “The Wyld Stallions”. See in the future their music united the world bringing peace and changing the planet into a true utopian society. Naturally this needed to happen so they were visited from the future by Rufus (The late George Carlin) and given a time traveling phone booth to go through time to pass their history test. The film was a hit and a sequel was made entitled Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey where the due must escape the afterlife following being killed by evil robot replicas sent from the future to alter history. The film concluded where, after using the time booth, they learned to play and united the world. Flash forward to 2020 and we are now treated to the third film in the series entitled Bill and Ted Face the Music. Turns out the Bill and Ted still, in 2020 have not yet written their one great song that will unite the world. That’s very unfortunate as because of this the world is beginning to collapse. After a very unsuccessful gig they begin to wonder if they ever will write their one great song. Their lives are not going great either, as their wives are basically sick of them at this point. Luckily for them they are visited one night by Kelly, the daughter of Rufus who takes them to The Great Leader. She informs Bill and Ted they have until 7:17 to write their song or reality as they know it will collapse. They know they cant write a hit song in a matter of hours so they use the old time travel phone booth in the hopes of going to the future and stealing the song they need from themselves. Things get slightly crazy from here. As they find out their future selves are essentially losers who blame their past selves for their wives leaving them Bill and Ted have to keep traveling farther ahead in time. While this is going on The Great Leader comes up with an idea to simply have Bill and Ted killed hoping that will somehow restore balance. Now while all of this is happening Bill and Ted’s daughters, Billie and Thea decide to take Kelly’s time machine and bring back the greatest musicians from history to help their fathers write the song. This goes ok until Dennis, the robot sent to kill Bill and Ted ends up killing their daughters, then inadvertently killing Bill and Ted as well. This sends the entire group to hell for some reason where they meet back up with Death. Together they must reform their original band and finish the song to save the world. The film has a lot going on to say the least. But it all works out. Not only story wise, but for the audience as well. Bill and Ted Face the Music has the same good natured heart that the original film did. It doesn’t rely on dirty jokes and sexual references. No, all these years later Bill and Ted is a simple feel good family friendly comedy. And to be honest its exactly what is needed in todays current climate. Its funny, touching, and the chemistry between Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter is simply amazing. Its as if these characters haven’t aged a day. Throwing in the addition of their daughters only added to the overall charm of the film. Sadly the film did not get a chance to shine at the box office due to the pandemic but it did get a limited run as a few theaters were open at the time, and it got a good run on VOD. I believe if it had gotten a full run, as it was planned to, and things were normal it would have been a huge box office success. Well now if you didn’t do the route of VOD you can watch it on Blu-ray thanks to the new Warner Brothers release, which looks and sounds amazing. This is a fantastic film, one that will live on for generations, much like the first two films in the series have. Fun, sweet, and just all a round good hearted Bill and Ted Face The Music is a definite must see. Pick it up and enjoy. Overall 4 out of 5 Stars!  You know the feeling when you watch a movie and go “What the hell did I just watch?” Well that happened to me years ago when I saw the film Shock Treatment. No not the Rocky Horror follow up, that simply made me cringe. I am talking about the 1973 Alain Jessua classic. In fact I had to watch it three times. Its not that its hard to follow, its just a bit out there. It had been a long time since I saw it so when Severin sent it to me the other night I immediately popped it in to see how my “adult” self would enjoy it. What followed was a rollicking 90min for me, not so much my wife, but definitely me.
Shock Treatment is the story of Helene Masson. She is a high profile owner of an upscale fashion company but her personal life isn’t that great. 38 years old, not married, and recently dumped by her boyfriend. Not a great combination. So she does what anyone would do in that situation. She has a midlife crisis, followed with a mental breakdown. She is feeling old and worthless So her friend Gerome tells her she needs time away to relax and get better and suggests they visit a rejuvenation spa. He convinces her it is just what she needs as he has heard they have an amazing anti-aging therapy and they heads off to the place, which is basically tucked away in the middle of nowhere and ran by two doctors. Dr Devilers, and Dr Bebard. She travels out and falls in love with the place. She befriends several of the guest as well as Joa, on of the employees who is there illegally from Portugal. She is so happy she begins spending time with him, even speaking with him in Portuguese. She begins using their new anti-age formula and notices spectacular results. Now tis place is expensive and one morning Gerome finds out he cannot cover the bill and they find him dead, apparently of a suicide. This leaves Helen distraught to say the least so she heads out to find Joa to help comfort her. Problem is he seems to have disappeared. In fact a lot of guests have disappeared over time. Of course this leads to Helene trying to discover what is going on. Especially when the good Doctors tell her she is forbidden to leave. Turns out this magic fountain of youth serum is made from the people who have disappearing. You know body and plasma harvesting. I mean you of course need that to make an anti-age serum. Helen does discover this, so it’s not like I’m giving a major spoiler and she must not only try to stop them, but escape as well. I still love this film. It does have blood, and nudity like all the exploitation fair of this era but this one relies more on psychological tension, combined of course with an insane plot. The acting is very good especially from Annie Girardot as Helene and Alain Delon as Dr Devilers. The Entire cast works well together and the tension is high throughout the entire film. Everything moves along at a brisk pace and you are never left with a dull moment. Severin has once again done an outstanding job with the transfer. This is not a dark film so everything comes to life on your television. The score is very well done and really comes alive from your surround sound. Once again they have done an amazing job with the cover art and as I keep telling them they need to make posters of these films they put out. And yes it does have special features as well.
This is another long lost classic from Severin and if you’re a fan of these types of films you need to pre order this one today. Its got a limited edition 2 disc set, which I highly recommend getting before they are gone. Add this one to your collection and get ready for a crazy ride. Overall 3 out of 5 Stars!  Severin films is at it again. And yes I mean that in a good way. I always look forward to the newest crop of Severin releases and this title is no exception. Its called Patrick Still Lives, and I am ashamed to say that this is a title that has escaped me all these years. Yes, Severin has once again stumped me with a title. But that’s good, as I could not wait to sit down and watch this one. And let me tell you, I was not disappointed.
Patrick Herschel is a young man, who one morning when standing on the curb with his father, who happens to be a doctor, gets a bottle thrown at him by some people driving by in a car. There arm is definitely strong as the bottle hits him with such power he is knocked out cold and put in a coma. His dad is overcome with grief and takes Patrick home to care for him. Over the years Patrick not only remains in the coma but because of it he begins to develop telekinesis. His father never got over what happened to his son so he decides to get his revenge in one of the most elaborate plots I have ever seen. See Dr Herschel is not only a top surgeon but he also owns the upscale Herschel Relaxation Resort. A health spa of sorts where Patrick, along with other patients are staying at. Patrick who is along side other comatose patients has been somehow drawing power for these people. He can do the typical move stuff like lift a girls skirt, things like that. He father has been studying his condition and decides to invite a group of people, the people driving in the van who threw the bottle at his son, to the resort to gain his revenge via Patrick’s psychic powers. The group of people are actually pretty awful so you will never actually feel pity on them. Patrick uses his mental powers to start killing them off one by one. And I must say it is done in very grizzly fashion. Heads decapitated by car windows. Boiled to death in a swimming pool, which has a great make up effect of all the skin melting off. Stabbed to death with a fire poker, you name it. And its not just all violent kills from Patrick. As these are awful people you get plenty of cat fights, drunken abuse, and for some reason or another an ungodly amount of nudity. You even get a sexual assault with a metal rod, that does not end well. Severin Films in my opinion are doing some of the best transfers in the business today. This film is as crisp and clean as one of todays big budget releases. The video quality is fantastic, and that’s saying something as I’ve a feeling the negative was probably worn over the years. The dark scenes never suffer from a blue tint and everything is smooth as can be. The score is great as well and thanks to Severin the audio is amazing as well. It sounds fantastic coming out of your surround sound. And as Severin always goes above and beyond you get a great looking cover, and yes special features as well. C’est la Vie – Interview with Actor Gianni Dei Original Trailer Reversable cover sleeve This is a totally insane exploration film to say the least, and I mean that in the best way possible. Lets recap, a kid in a coma gets telekinesis and gets revenge on the people he put he their thanks to his grief stricken slightly insane father at a health resort. You can write this this, well someone did, and I am very glad for that fact. If you want a fun evening pick this one up right away. You can pre order it now. Overall 3.5 out of 5 Stars!  I have mentioned this before. Actually I have mentioned it time and time again. Hammer films are some of the best horror films ever made. Top notch story, acting, atmosphere, score, particle effects, you name it. They were the cream of the crop when it came to horror. Their use of the classic monsters was better than the original counterparts. Dracula was always a main draw for them. In fact the films featuring Dracula and his arch enemy Van Helsing were some of the best films the company made. Very different from their American counterparts, the Hammer films featured a higher emphasis on sexuality, and often much more graphic special effects. One of the early titles was The Brides of Dracula.
Brides of Dracula is the tale of Marianne Danielle. She is a teacher on her way to Transylvania. When her coach approaches a “Haunted” area he simply lets her out and leaves he at a small Inn. She meets Baroness Meinster who takes pity on her and even offers her a place to stay for the night. She is warned by the other towns people not to go, but follows the Baroness home anyway to her castle. She discovers the Baroness has a son, who she keeps chained up in a room in the castle. When Marianne is able to sneak into his room he asks her to free him. She of course agrees but comes to find out from the maid, Greta that he is chained up because he is a vampire, turned by Dracula himself. The Baroness keeps him chained up and brings him young women to feed on. Marianne flees into the night and is found by Van Helsing the following morning. Turns out Van Helsing was summoned to the town by Father Stepnik, a local priest who has been leery of the Baroness and what goes on in her castle for some time now. Upon his arrival Van Helsing is alerted to a funeral happening for a young girl found dead in the woods in the castle area. He tries to get her father to not bury her, as he sees the bite marks on her throat. He warns the father that if she is burred it will finish the transformation and she will rise from the dead as a vampire. The father does not listen, and later that night what Van Helsing predicted comes true. Van Helsing and Father Stepnik travel to the castle to discover that not only is the Baroness a vampire but that her son, the Barron has left the castle and has traveled to ask Marianne to be his bride, something that she accepts without thought. Van Helsing must now stop the Baron from making Marianne his bride and contended with the other vampire brides he has taken over the years. This is a great movie. I saw it as a child and fell in love with it. It still holds up to this day. All of these Hammer films do. The acting, pacing, and overall tone are timeless. I had a great time watching it last night. These films were so far ahead of their time they are right on par, if not better than the current crop of horror films out there today. I was thrilled that Scream Factory has added this to their growing collection. They have done an amazing job. The transfer is breath taking to say the least. The picture is crisp and clear, and the audio is fantastic. Hammer had some of the best scores in terms of horror films and this is no exception. It sounds amazing coming from your speakers. Plus as its Scream Factory they even included special features.
Overall 4 out of 5 Stars!  The following Blu-ray was provided to me by Warner Brother for review. Thoughts and opinions are my own.
I’m going to say this right off the bat. Stargirl is a great series. Its fun, fresh, action packed, warm, you name it. It began as a DC Direct show but quickly made its way onto the CW. In fact as of this writing all first run shows from DC have moved to CW and HBO respectfully. Stargirl, actually appeared before her show during the mega Crisis crossover. We only got a quick glimpse but it was enough to show she was going to be a part of the giant universe that DC has created on the small screen. Stargirl opens hot with the Justice Society of American doing battle with there evil counterparts the Injustice Society of America. This time the Injustice society has the upper hand and they manage to kill all of the heroes. Before Starman, their leader dies he gives his sidekick Pat Dugan (Luke Wilson) his cosmic staff. He wants him to keep it until the staff finds a worthy replacement who can rebuild the Justice Society of America. No in a twist we encounter a little girl named Courtney Whitmore who has just been told her father will not be home for Christmas. Stargirl then cuts 10 years later where Pat has married Courtney’s mom Barbara and they are all moving back home to where the battle took place, Blue Valley. Courtney is less than thrilled with a new stepdad, a new school, and a new life in general. When she is going through old crates in the basement she stumbles upon the Cosmic Staff that comes to life for her. She immediately bonds with it flying over town and even blowing up a high school jerks car. She asks Pat what it is and he tells her the story of the Justice Society. She becomes convinced that her father was Starman and this staff has chosen her to battle evil. Problem is some of the Injustice Society is still around town and when they hear of the staff one of the members, Brainwave attacks Courtney. Luckily she is saved by Patrick who is inside a giant robot. The series progresses at a great pace. Courtney becomes Stargirl and with Patrick’s help begins to recruit members for the new Justice Society, all while battling the Injustice Society in the typical villain of the week style, but with the main story continuing for the entire season. The progression of the plot is fantastic. It never once drags for a single episode and the entire cast is incredibly likeable. Brec Bassinger, who plays Courtney / Stargirl is outstanding. She and Wilson have a great chemistry between them. While not as goofy as Legends of Tomorrow, but much more lighter than Flash or Arrow this is a fantastic show for top to bottom. Warner Brother has released this on Blu-ray and it looks stunning. This really and truly is a comic book come to life. Everything is bright and colorful, even the night scenes come alive especially when showing off the cosmic staff. The score for this is very well done as well. It’s a great superhero score, but with a much lighter tone. Everything bellows from your surround sound and comes to life before your eyes. This is one of my new favorite DC shows to say the least. It’s a fun ride from beginning to end. Sadly it’s a short season consisting of only 13 episodes, but don’t worry, CW has already picked it up for Season 2. DO yourself a favor and pick this one up right away. Overall 4 out of 5 Stars!  Might as well keep the cannibal film review train going and talk about another new title coming out from the amazing folks over at Severin. This one is right up my alley in terms of overall fun and horror. Think of it as Indian Jones, meets a bunch of half-naked models and fights cannibals. Yeah that about sums it up. I’m talking of course about the 1985 cult classic Massacre in Dinosaur Valley.
Massacre in Dinosaur Valley follows the adventures of Kevin Hall. When we first meet him he is in Brazil looking for long lost dinosaur bones to sell to the highest bidder. He ends up hooking up with a doctor his daughter, two fashion models, and a crazed Vietnam vet and his equally crazy wife to head out to the fabled Dinosaur Valley. Their plane crashes in the deep dark jungle and they soon encounter terrors. Now this is where things not only pick up like any cannibal film, but there are twists in this one. Our group are of course terrorized by the local cannibal tribe, but also an evil dictator who has a mine there and is using slaves to do his work of smuggling jewels. Throw in some alligators, piranhas, and quicksand and you not only have a gore drenched cannibal film, but you have an action adventure film as well. And did I mention the nudity? In fact This has more nudity than I have ever seen in a cannibal film. Its loaded with gore as well. And not of the cheap variety. It’s very well done and I put it right up there with the likes of Cannibal Ferox and Cannibal Holocaust. The gore is all here in glorious Blu-ray quality. The highlight, if you will is definitely the eating of ones entrails. So to recap. We have an Indiana Jones style adventure film with cannibals and other various jungle animals killing and eating people. What doesn’t scream amazing about that. Severin has once again done an amazing job with this film. I had seen it years ago but the print was terrible. Not any longer. Severin has restored this to perfection. Everything looks clean and bright. This is a beautiful transfer. Everything comes alive, and when we do have a dark scene it never suffers from the dreaded blue tint that can ruin a film. The score is great. Its upbeat and evil at the same time. It keeps the film moving along and it sounds great coming from your speakers. On top of all of this Severin has special features as well.
Overall 3.5 out of 5 Stars!  I like Cannibal films. Sure there gross outs but there still fun to watch for the most part. Movies like Cannibal Holocaust and Cannibal Ferox are classics in the exploitation / horror community. Sure there are countless others but of course those are the two most famous. Now there is one out there that is actually very much under the radar. It’s an Indonesian cannibal movie, but filmed in the same style as the above mentioned Italian films of this nature. Its called Primitives aka Savage Terror. And one thing I can say, its sure different.
Primitives is about a group of students who decide its best to do their own research on a paper they ae writing about primitive culture and decide to head on out to the jungles and find a savage tribe to write about. That way they can have a great first hand account. Now of course we all know that’s a bad idea. They hop on a little raft, head down river, and after the raft crashes and they become separated, two of them are captured by the local tribe. They are identified as Cannibals, but there surprisingly not as savage as I am used to seeing in these films. They grunt a lot and wear paint but they are actually not all the vicious. The kids are all captured even though Tommy (The main guy) knows Karate and tries valiantly to fight them off one by one. I say that because they do not just charge him and eat him. No they get locked up and we are lead to believe they are just being held until they can be mutilated an eaten by this group of painted cannibals. Hopefully their friends can find them and save them in time. Problem is, nothing happens. Nothing. We get a bit of nudity like in all these pictures and a good amount of animals killing animals. Hell we get a great alligator kill scene but the cannibal scenes are really not like the other films. We see gore and killing but there mostly of, like I said, animal, and jungle trap variety. Don’t worry they spike trap scene is great. But there is an awful lot of nothing going on here. In fact there is a large chunk of the film where there is no dialogue at all. I mean it looks good, the plot is there, it just doesn’t really come together like a bloodbath I’m used to seeing in these films. Severine has plucked this film out of obscurity and are releasing it on Blu-ray. I must say the transfer, like everything they do is spot on. It looks very well in every sense of the word. The outside scenes are bright and colorful never blurry or two grainy, and that’s very impressive given the budget and age of the negative. The audio is crisp and clear and sounds great. In fact one thing I will praise is the score used for this film. Its very haunting and it does help to add a bit of terror to the mood. And as its Severine it even has a nice amount of special features.
Overall 2.5 out of 5 Stars!  Bruno Mattei, the man behind countless Exploitation films like Emmanuelle’s Revenge, Hell of the Living Dead, and Women’s Prison Massacre made many classic films throughout his career. One of those was the 1995 classic Cruel Jaws aka Jaws 5. It was made from new footage of course as well as some footage from Deep Blood, and Great White. It was a heck of a film to say the least when it was released back on VHS. Countless DVD and Blu-ray collections were planned but because of the use of other film footage it never came about. Well that’s all about to change as the amazing folks over at Severin.
Cruel Jaws takes place at a water attraction park where Dag Sorenson works, Dag by the way looks almost identical to Hulk Hogan. Dag has fallen on hard times. He was in an accident that cost his wife her life. His daughter has many issues, and because his water park isn’t doing that great he’s about to get evicted for not being able to pay rent. There is a subplot involving the mob and Dag’s shady landlord but that really isn’t important. What’s important is a giant Tiger Shark that was subjected to military experiments and trained to kill has escaped and is not heading to Hampton Bay. Now much like in Jaws the local Sheriff, Francis Berger knows this is bad news and wants all the beaches closed down for safety. But the Samuel Lewis, Dag’s landlord and all around slimy guy wants everything open for business to make money, as the town survives on tourist’s. Francis decides its up to him to stop this giant shark from eating his town so he enlists the help of Dag, and a local shark expert named Bill to save the day. First off they call it a Tiger Shark, but its clear they are using footage of a Great White. The story is basically Jaws only out of order. In fact you can tell there is some Jaws footage used in this. The characters are corny as hell, and the side plots with the mob serve no point, but guess what? It doesn’t matter because this film is fun as hell. Its better than Jaws 2, 3 and 4 easily. The film knows what it is and embraces it. Over the top kills, with a nice amount of blood, nudity, campy dialogue, its all there and it works. I personally love it, and have seen it several times over the years. I was beyond excite to see the fine folks at Severin release this. And they did a great job. The transfer is immaculate. Its an outdoors film that looks great. Everything is bright and crisp. The night scenes are dark, in fact some of them look like the people are just shadows. That’s not the transfer fault, that’s how poor the lighting was on the original filming. But I must point out that the dark scenes still look like that but a bit clearer. They do not have any of the blue tint that can plague those scenes. The audio is great. I love the score in this film and it sounds fantastic coming through the surround sound. On top of that its even got special features.
Overall 3.5 out of 5 Stars!  Synapse Films, a company known for there outstanding horror and exploitation releases is sure putting out some great long lost comedies as of late. A while back they did a stunning job on a favorite of mine, Hot Dog: The Movie and now they are treating us to another great comedy film entitled Suckers. The film came out back in 2001 and I will be honest in saying I had never seen it, or for that matter even heard of it so I was anxious to give it a watch.
Suckers is comedy starring Louis Mandylor as Bobby DeLuca. He owes money to some really bad loan sharks and needs to get his hands on some cash to pay them back fast. His wife (Lori Loughlin) sees an ad for a used car salesman and tells him to apply for the job. He does, and he gets it. He works for Reggie (Daniel Benzali) the most ruthless car salesman out there. In fact in the opening we see one of the salesmen actually get more than the car is worth from an unsuspecting couple but then gets screamed at for not up selling them on new floor mats as well. Reggie wants his team to take as much money from these customers as they can. He takes Bobby under his wing (sort of) and trains him in the art of scamming customers, something Bobby is a bit uncomfortable doing. Reggie then decides to really up the game and start a contest. A cash prize for whoever can close the most deals in a month. Bobby goes all out as this would net him enough cash to pay off his debts. The problem arises however when the loan sharks find out where he is working. This film is hilarious. Drugs, sex, gambling, you name it. This team of car salesmen do it all. Benzali absolutely steals not only every scene he is in, but the entire film as well. He plays Reggie as a complete scumbag and its hilarious to watch him. It also makes you wonder about buying a new car. Be prepared for a very dark ending as well. Shot on 35mm Synapse has done an amazing job on this transfer. It’s set outside mostly and the colors are perfect. Everything is crisp and clear. It all pops on the small screen. The audio is great as well. Never muffled for a second. This is a very clean transfer and Synapse even included special features. One of them is actually a “Bonus Double Feature” as you get the film Six Days In Roswell. Six Days in Roswell if a fake documentary that is absolutely hysterical. Director Richard Kronfeld (from Trekkies) has one goal in life. TO be abducted by aliens. In fact he dreams about it on a nightly basis. Problem is he lives in Minnesota and people there just don’t get abducted very often. So after thinking it over he decides to rent a car and head out to the main source of aliens on earth, Roswell New Mexico. He makes it there all right, just in time for the 50th anniversary party for the fabled alien spaceship crash. I cant really say much more because I would be giving away all the jokes. But trust me when I say this is hilarious. The alien fanatics are certainly easy to poke fun of, and this film does just that. Trust me when I say it’s a laugh riot from beginning to end. This is a fantastic Blu-ray, and yes before I forget there are other special features included as well. · Audio commentary with writer/director Roger Nygard, writer/actor Joe Yannetty, cinematographer Nathan Hope, actor/composer Jimmie Wood and composer JJ Holiday · Deleted scenes, raw takes and original trailer · Also included on the Blu-ray of SUCKERS is a Bonus Double Feature 1080p presentation of an all-new 4K restoration of SIX DAYS IN ROSWELL with its own set of Special Features: · Reversible Cover for SIX DAYS IN ROSWELL · All-new English 5.1 surround sound remix · Audio commentary with producer/editor Roger Nygard, director Timothy B. Johnson, and star Rich Kronfeld · The Making of SIX DAYS IN ROSWELL · Original trailer · If you want a great laugh pick this fantastic double feature up right away. Both films are absolute comedic gold, and I promise you will have a laugh filled evening. Here hoping Synapse pumps out a few more of these gems. Overall 4 out of 5 Stars!  The Vestron Video Collection keeps rolling along. So far every release under this banner has been excellent. In fact I cannot stress enough as to how well these are handled. From quality in the video and audio to the special features these things are great. I can only hope more of them come out. This particular one is a bit different. It’s a family film that was embraced by the horror crowd. The 1989 comedy cult classic Little Monsters starring Fred Savage and Howie Mandel.
Little Monsters stars Savage as Brian Stevenson an 11 year old who has just moved to a new town with his family. When we meet Brian he is always being blamed for everything that goes wrong around the house. His bike left in the driveway (which his dad runs over) freezer left open, melted ice cream, nothing major, just lots and lots of little things. Brian truly has done none of these and is quick to blame his little brother Eric. Eric has a theory that it’s a monster that lives under his bed. As everyone, including Brian laughs this off Brian agrees to spend the night in Eric’s room to prove monsters are not real. Problem is Brian keeps hearing mysterious noises and cant make it through the night. After being laughed at for being scared of a “monster” Brian again goes to spend the night in Eric’s room, only this time he sets up traps. Pretty family friendly trap I may add. Essentially he rigs the legs of the bed to collapse when triggered by a sting attached to some Doritos. The trap does work and Brain catches a blue monster maned Maurice (Howie Mandel). Turns out Maurice is pretty cool. Brain quickly befriends him, and Maurice takes Brian under Eric’s bed to show him where all the monsters live. Its an entire world connected by vast staircases that lead to children’s beds. No adults, games, fast food, everything fun. The monsters go out at night and pull various pranks on humans, and at times scare them in the process for fun. Brian and Maurice become such good friends that Brian starts going with him on these prank trips at night. Everything is going fine until Brian goes with a group of monsters who plan on scarring a baby. Brian objects to this and turns of the lights in the room to stop them. See when the lights come on the monsters turn into a pile of cloths. The problem is when the light hits Brian he shrinks a bit. Turns out Brian is slowly turning into a monster. In fact all the monsters are former children who have been turned. When Brian removes the legs from the beds and no longer goes with Maurice his little brother Eric is kidnaped by a monster named Snik to lure Brian back to their world to finish turning him into a monster. Brian gathers his friends and goes there in an attempt to save Eric. This is a great film. It’s a family film for sure. Funny, well-acted, and just all around timeless. Howie Mandel is amazing as the goofy monster Maurice, and Fred Savage is fantastic in his role as well. This is just a good film from top to bottom. The monster makeup is extremely well done. Think of Nightbreed for kids. In fact the monsters are all done so well that this film was embraced by horror fans early on and over the years has developed a huge cult following. That’s where Vestron Comes in Lionsgate has released this under their Vestron Video Collection banner and it is stunning. This is a fantastic transfer that really shows off how well done these monster are. The effects look fantastic on this print. Everything just pops and comes to life. It almost feels real. The audio is amazing as well and you really feel part of the monster world when having this bellow out of your surround sound. Plus its loaded with special features. NEW*Audio Commentary with Jarret Gahan, Editor-in-Chief ofCultofMonster.com *NEW*Isolated Score Selections and Audio Interview with Composer David Newman *NEW*“Call Him Maurice”–An Interview with Actor Howie Mandel *NEW*“Beneath the Bed”–An Interview with Producer Andrew Licht *NEW*“Monsters Big & Small”–An Interview with Special Makeup Effects Creator Robert Short *NEW*Vintage Interviews with Actors Fred Savage, Ben Savage, Special Makeup Effects Creator Robert Short, and Director Richard Alan Greenberg Behind-the-Scenes Footage “Making Maurice”–Vintage Footage of Howie Mandel’s Makeup Transformation Vintage EPK & VHS Promo Theatrical Trailer Still Gallery Just as fun today as it was years ago Little Monsters is not only a fun film for families and children, it’s a great film for fans of horror as well. A simple film guaranteed to make you smile. I highly recommend picking this one up for your collection. Overall 4 out of 5 Stars! |