Welcome back to the latest episode of Slipped Discs, where I give you a head’s up on what nerdy stuff is available to come home with you, because I still believe in physical media!
Once more, all this information comes from Blu-Ray.com, but they list everything that will be in the stores, whereas I shall provide you with what I feel is the interesting genre fare.
So, my Physical Medians, how are you holding up under the quarantine? If you’re an essential worker, I hope that you are staying safe.
Sadly, we have another week of fairly slim pickings this week, but there are a few gems that you can get shipped to you so you can keep yourself entertained as you stay home. So let’s dive right in!
The Wind (1986) “A novelist is stalked by a psychopath one stormy night.” I’m not familiar with this one, but it stars Meg Foster and her intense eyes (you are probably most familiar with her from her appearing in They Live, Stepfather 2, and Leviathan, amongst other 80’s fare), as well as David McCallum. The film is getting the deluxe treatment by the fine folks at Arrow Video, so it should be worth a look.
Possession (2008) “A woman’s husband collides with his brother in a freak car accident, landing both of them into comas. Complications arise when the brother wakes and believes that he is the woman’s husband.” A PG-13 horror vehicle for post-Buffy Sarah Michelle Gellar. I don’t really remember enough about it to say if it’s bad, but that also means I can’t say if it’s good, either. But it also has Lee Pace, so it can’t be terrible.
Underwater (2020) “Mysterious creatures terrorize crew members aboard a research station located seven miles below the surface of the ocean.” I did catch this one in the theater. I mean, it’s horror set at the bottom of the ocean with a large Cthulhu-like creature, so I had to see it. I have a brand to maintain, you know? Anyway, the movie, sadly, is not that great. It tries to be a mix of Aliens and The Abyss, but it’s more Leviathan (there’s that movie again, I think I need a rewatch) and Sphere, in that there’s an interesting premise here, but not enough happens to keep you engaged through the whole thing. Some interesting visuals/cool monsters, but the sparsity of the action, along with the flat characters, made the movie a let down for me, with a score of 4/10, if I had to give it one.
Police Squad!: The Complete Series (1982) “A spoof of traditional police dramas, this original slapstick series from the Zucker brothers is bursting with non sequiturs and sight gags that parody the labored lives of law enforcement. Leslie Nielsen stars as the foolish flatfoot Detective Frank Drebin, whose literal quips and absurd antics disentangle each misdemeanor and perpetuate each laugh-out-loud moment in this classic show.” Six episodes of pure comedy gold. From the team that brought you Airplane!, this show cemented Leslie Neilsen’s career shift from stalwart leading man to comedy legend. If you enjoy the Naked Gun movies, you should see where they got their start. this is my top pick of the week.
V: The Final Battle (1984) “The Battle begun in the Miniseries ‘V’ continues. The war is told from the view point of the resistance group based in Los Angeles, CA as they struggle to find weaknesses of the aliens they can exploit. In addition, not all the aliens feel their invasion was right, and also work to stop the war.” The follow-up mini-series to the most excellent V, this one suffers the standard diminishing returns of most sequels, but it’s still good and worth a look. Though the title is a bit of a lie, because the battle kept on battling into the V TV series.
Captain Kronos: Vampire Hunter (1974) “A master swordsman and former soldier and his hunchbacked assistant hunt vampires.” That description does not do this Hammer Films classic the justice it deserves. So you should tune into the Needless Things podcast (which you should already be doing anyway), specifically episode 307, so you can listen to Dave tell you exactly why this movie is awesome, and why you should buy this as his (unknowing) pick of the week!
The Golem (1920) “In 16th-century Prague, a Jewish rabbi creates a giant creature from clay, called the Golem, and using sorcery, brings the creature to life in order to protect the Jews of Prague from persecution.” Another classic of the silent era, brought to us by Kino Lorber. This movie laid a lot of the foundations for what horror films could do, and could become. Like I said last week, I am a fan of the golden age of cinema, and I am so glad to see these films being preserved and presented to a modern audience. I hope that you check it out.
Death Kappa: 10th Anniversary Attack! (2010) “The kappa, in Japanese folklore, are water goblins that are closely associated with a certain town in the country. Unfortunately, the area is also home to a militant splinter group of researchers dedicated to developing amphibious super soldiers based on the kappa of legends. When their experiments result in murders by some escapees, the appearance of an actual kappa, and the triggering of an atomic bomb, the consequences are of epic proportions. A monster arrives in the midst of the nuclear fallout, and Japan’s defenses are helpless against it. Mankind’s only savior is an irradiated water goblin that is on the rampage with death in its eyes. DEATH KAPPA is a throwback to old-style kaiju films by writer/director Tomoo Haraguchi.” The gist there sounds like something out of a Jonathan Mayberry Joe Ledger novel (that’s a good thing), so combine that with kaiju and folklore, and this is one I’m definitely going to have to check out.
Other titles of note: Gutterballs (2008), After Midnight (2019), Eye See You (2002)
Again, not a whole lot, but there are some real gems here. Let me know which of these are a must-buy for you, a pass, or which ones I missed!