Cinemas & Home Entertainment this week…
GRIM PICKINGS this week includes key dates to dismember with the rebirth of a genre masterpiece in cinemas and the darkest day horror has ever known on home entertainment!
IN CINEMAS
Thursday November 8th
SUSPIRIA
Luca Guadagnino’s bold reimagining of Dario Argento’s SUSPIRIA plays more as an arthouse drama with horror elements than it does a horror film per se but those horror elements are both haunting and at times genuinely hideous. While not without its problems, Guadagnino’s take on the source material is ambitious, uncompromising and a welcome relief from the countless retreads of classics we’ve endured over the years. Temper your expectations, approach with patience and prepare to experience a unique reinterpretation of a genre masterpiece, Argento’s SUSPIRIA this is not, this is a new nightmare reborn from unfettered passion and unadulterated expression. A darkness swirls at the centre of a world-renowned dance company, one that will engulf the troupe’s artistic director, an ambitious young dancer, and a grieving psychotherapist. Some will succumb to the nightmare. Others will finally wake up.
THE GIRL IN THE SPIDER’S WEB
Lisbeth Salander, the cult figure and title character of the acclaimed Millennium book series created by Stieg Larsson, returns to the screen in a first-time adaptation of the recent global bestseller starring Claire Foy and helmed by DON’T BREATH filmmaker Fede Alvarez.
HOME ENTERTAINMENT
Wednesday November 7th
THE CHAIN REACTION
Making its worldwide Blu-ray debut is the high-octane 1980 Ozploitation nightmare, CHAIN REACTION. For mechanic Larry Stilson (Steve Bisley) and his wife Carmel (Arna-Maria Winchester), a weekend in paradise turns into their most horrifying nightmare. At their retreat in an isolated mountain valley, they are confronted by Heinrich (Ross Thompson,), the victim of a deadly nuclear spill who is in the throes of a horrifying radiation death. A top-secret government security team moves in with an army of vicious decontamination workers to seal off the valley, forcing Larry and Carmel to attempt a daring high-speed escape……But, the question growing more urgent by the minute is – can the radioactive waste be contained? Umbrella Entertainment’s Blu-ray contains an abundance of featurettes in addition to extended interviews from NOT QUITE HOLLYWOOD, deleted scenes, image gallery, trailers and an early cut of the film.
DAY OF THE DEAD
Returning to Blu-ray locally in an Ultimate Edition loaded with special features and an all-new HD master is George A. Romero’s DAY OF THE DEAD! Hidden deep within a fortified underground missile silo an isolated and increasingly unstable ragtag group of scientists and soldiers continue to work to find a cure for this unstoppable plague. Tensions soon escalate between a maniacal bloodthirsty military leader and a borderline mad scientist, sparking a climactic assault on the bunker by thousands of zombies… one final battle for humanity’s survival. Umbrella’s Blu-ray release contains two audio commentary tracks, behind-the-scenes and retrospective featurettes along with an EXCLUSIVE interview with George A. Romero from the 2008 Melbourne International Film Festival!
THE SPY WHO DUMPED ME
Mila Kunis & Kate McKinnon headline this comedy actioner that utlises its European setting to drive an equal measure of laughs and ambitious set-pieces, for what is marketed as a comedy, this one has some top notch fight choreography and action sequences. Audrey (Kunis) and Morgan (McKinnon), two thirty-year-old best friends in Los Angeles, are thrust unexpectedly into an international conspiracy when Audreys ex-boyfriend shows up at their apartment with a team of deadly assassins on his trail. Surprising even themselves, the duo jump into action, on the run throughout Europe from assassins and a suspicious-but-charming British agent, as they hatch a plan to save the world. Roadshow’s Blu-ray & 4K Ultra-HD releases include never-before-seen deleted scenes, outtakes and four featurettes giving insight into the making of the film. 4K fans rejoice as the Ultra-HD SKU includes Dolby Vision and a Dolby Atmos audio track!
LUNATICS (DVD Only)
Making its international disc debut is Josh Becker’s cult classic LUNATICS, what’s more is that Umbrella Entertainment have loaded it with features including a commentary track, isolated score selections, behind-the-scenes featurette and more! In a seedy part of Los Angeles, poet Hank Stone (Ted Raimi) has spent six months without leaving his apartment because of his paranoid delusions of sadistic doctors, rappers, and spiders. Nancy (Deborah Foreman, Real Genius), who seems to jinx things by wanting to help, is dumped by her boyfriend, finds herself penniless on the street and soon runs afoul of a local gang. Hank accidentally calls her at a phone booth whilst trying to dial a “talk line” and invites her to his place. There they must help each other overcome their respective problems.
PATIENT ZERO
Monster Fest 2017 award-winning filmmaker Stefan Ruzowitzky (COLD HELL), returns with a run-of-the-mill post-apocalyptic rage virus/zombie film. In the pandemic thriller, humanity is battling intelligent, adrenaline-fueled creatures born from a viral super-strain. After being bitten, human survivor Morgan (Matt Smith) realises he is asymptomatic and can communicate with the infected, leading the last survivors on a hunt for Patient Zero and a cure.
Grim Pickings is written weekly by Jarret Gahan.
