Folks ... at the risk of sounding sexist, let me be the first to say that actress Cassandra Peterson is mostly definitely not in need of a makeover; and yet ... here we are.

I kid, I kid, I kid!

The good people at Arrow Films are doing the unthinkable: they're giving the lady a makeover ... well, in her guise as the Horror queen Elvira, that is ... this November when her theatrical release Elvia: Mistress Of The Dark enjoys an all-new home video release.  I've received the press materials just today, so I wanted to pass along word to everyone in the readership.  I've only seen snippets of this one back in the day, so I couldn't speak to the full experience.  I'm guessing that if you're an Elvira fan then it's probably something worth looking forward to.

Also, I remember back in the late 1980's and early 1990's that the lovely Ms. Peterson was quite the sensation.  From what I recall, she played heavy on the sexual innuendo when promoting a line-up of Horror schlock that made the rounds on a cable channel.  It was all in good fun; and -- if memory serves -- she had a respectable following back then as well.  Though I think her delightful personae has somewhat faded into the landscape of forgotten television, I still think it would be great if she -- or another Elvira with her blessing -- made a comeback for those of us who enjoy such lighthearted fare.

In any event, I'm passing along the details below.  You know what to do about that.

-- EZ
​

On November 12th, Arrow Video delivers the beloved horror-comedy classic, Elvira: Mistress of the Dark on 4K UHD, starring the campy "hostess with mostest." In 1988, Elvira departed the red sofa on the Movie Macabre set to star in her first major motion picture, solidifying her status as a major comedy/pop culture icon. The Limited-Edition release features a brand new 4K restoration in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible) and hours of special features.
 
Elvira (Cassandra Peterson, Allan Quatermain and the Lost City of Gold) quits her job and is down on her luck when the phone rings with the news that a distant aunt has died and named her in the will. She embarks on a cross-country trip to accept the inheritance. As it turns out, the relative has left Elvira a poodle, a decrepit manor, and a family cookbook. The prudish locals, led by Edie McClurg (Ferris Bueller's Day Off), aren’t happy that the goth temptress remains in their precious town, and Elvira appears bound for a one-night bonfire instead of the lush life she envisioned.
 
The special features include three vintage audio commentaries, a feature length making-of documentary with cast and crew, a featurette on the special effects, an introduction by the director, original storyboards, image galleries, and an Illustrated collector’s booklet with essays. 
​

Sometimes, the biggest claim-to-fame any motion picture might be able to make rests on the shoulders of one of its contributors.
 
The film industry as a whole is absolutely rife with stories of A-List pictures made stronger with the inclusion of a particular director, writer, or actor.  Even defying greater odds, how many B-List films actually owe the biggest part of their reputation to having a particular talent in some lead role.  I suppose that the various permutations are endless – I can certainly cite a great number of productions I wouldn’t have seen except for the fact that a familiar favorite was listed amongst the credits – and there will likely always be those insider efforts that results in all of the screen’s good, bad, and ugly additions getting a little extra attention by having Person X participating in the process, however big or small that involvement might be.
 
That said, I knew the name of productive writer Edgar Wallace chiefly because he’s the author and screenwriter credited with the creation of one of the screen’s biggest gems if not the ‘eighth wonder of the world.’  In 1932, he penned the script that would become 1933’s box office sensation King Kong – a remarkable cinematic fable that continues to inspire storytellers to this day – indelibly taking a place in film history that few have matched.  (Yes, I realize he co-created the big beast, but my opinion stands nonetheless.)  But what I didn’t know was just how expansive his impact on the movie business truly was: a quick search of Google.com this morning confirms that – to date – his various works are responsible for a foundation of over 160 different screen projects.
 
Woof.  Somewhere … somehow … that has to be a record, am I right?
 
As can happen with any writer’s output, I suspect that the quality understandably varies, as a rundown of his IMDB.com doesn’t necessarily spark a lot of memories on my screenings.  Still, there has to be a good reason why a novel published in 1925 under the title “The Blue Hand” might endure with some interested parties for them to pick it up over four decades later and adapt it into a little something-something called Creature With The Blue Hand (1967).  Directed by Alfred Vohrer from an adaptation fashioned by Herbert Reinecker, Fred Denger, Harald G. Petersen, and Uschi Haarbrücker, the Horror/Mystery starred Harald Leipnitz, Klaus Kinski, Carl Lange, Ilse Steppat, and Diana Körner in big roles.
 
While the end result is a bit dubious, I’d argue that the picture still has enough Mystery (far more than Horror which is a bit too conventional) to intrigue some in the viewing audience.  My reservations with it tie almost exclusively to its poor pacing, though the fact that it kept breaking into highly unpredictable circumstances did produce a few unintended laughs.
​

(NOTE: The following review will contain minor spoilers necessary solely for the discussion of plot and/or characters.  If you’re the type of reader who prefers a review entirely spoiler-free, then I’d encourage you to skip down to the last few paragraphs for the final assessment.  If, however, you’re accepting of a few modest hints at ‘things to come,’ then read on …)
 
From the film’s IMDB.com page citation:
“Scotland Yard is after a homicidal maniac called The Blue Hand, which is what he uses to kill his victims.”
 
Here’s the thing: if you’re going to be a serial killer – or a murderer of some ill repute – it pays to have a gimmick.
 
To be blunt, psychopaths are revered for having a certain signature to delivering their dark deeds, one that gives them the reputation that they so fervently seek; and that’s probably one of the things that makes Creature With The Blue Hand relatable for audiences of any age.  Its killer – don’t worry, I won’t spoil it, not that it’d really make that much difference in this mildly convoluted affair – employs a Medieval weapon to inflict his death blows: a mighty gauntlet colored blue and made of steel, the fingers are removed so that four sharp blades slide into place for piercing flesh to the user’s delight.  Theatrically, it looks very Freddy Krueger but functions far more like Marvel’s Wolverine: in every case, however, it definitely packs the lethal wallop.
 
Of course, the other potential draw for Blue Hand would likely be its marquee name: Klaus Kinski (1926-1991) is, perhaps, remembered as much for his bizarre onscreen performances as he is his macabre offscreen lifestyle.  Often cited as being one of the cinema’s most intense players, it’s also been said that he had some rather famous behind-the-scenes tantrums, bringing more than a bit of trouble to a good handful of productions.  While he’s a bit subdued in this murder mystery, audiences might still reap the benefits of the fact that Kinski appears in not one but two roles here: he plays twin brothers Dave and Richard Emerson, both possibly heirs to the Emerson fortune and both inextricably linked to what we’re originally told are Dave’s trail of misdeeds.  (Did he do it?  Or did Richard do it, claiming to be Dave?  You get the idea.)  Sadly, neither performance really amounts to all that much in here; and yet I suppose that Kinski purists still couldn’t get enough of it.
​

Furthermore, viewers get to explore the clandestine richness of the Emerson estate.  (Way to go, production design team!)  Without going into too many of the particulars, let’s just say that what appears to be a rather dull and conventional British estate is positively loaded with secret passages, hidden doors, and the kinds of other wild inventions that make some of us salivate over the production details.  Not all of it necessarily works into the somewhat cumbersome whodunit plot, mind you, bu but that’s easy to forgive when you’re awash with glee at discovering the next hidden panel or the next disguised mechanism.  What I wouldn’t give to have immediately started production on a ghost story after this one ended as the house had everything going for it … well, except a dearly departed spirit coming back from the beyond, that is.  (A good script could’ve fixed that in a jiffy.)
 
Regrettably, Blue Hand mostly plods along, never quite galvanizing around anything other than who might be wielding that deadly metal mitt.  As a mystery, it really isn’t all that elaborate, though the script weaves through a fair number of twists and turns.  Alas, you probably won’t see them coming, and that’s mostly because it isn’t that kind of puzzle: the finer points are all obscured until their reveal, so I dare say some of it will make little sense or feel entirely incredulous in movie time.  The portrayal of the mentally impaired will also ruffle feathers of today’s hyper-sensitive viewership – asylums were a bit brutal in how they handled these unfortunate souls, and (ahem) damn near anything could get one committed back in the day it would seem.
 
In the end, I find it difficult to ascribe any great reason to spend time with the picture.  It isn’t poorly made – as I said above, the production details are quite nice in spots – but it just does so little with the material, perhaps hoping that Kinski’s participation and a few fancy gimmicks were enough to propel any achievable momentum.  What starts out as interesting and with some dramatic flourish rather quickly turns mundane: a few sequences – things like what psychiatric facility keeps on hand a huge supply of rats intended for therapeutic use or who thinks keeping a snake locked in a personal vault is a good idea – will leave you scratching your head in dismay … or, worse, delight.
​

Creature With The Blue Hand (1967) was produced by Rialto Film and Independent-International Pictures.  DVD distribution (for this particular release) has been coordinated by the fine folks at Film Masters.  As for the technical specifications?  While I’m no trained video expert, I found the provided sights-and-sounds to be very solid from start-to-finish.  Lastly, if you’re looking for special features?  Wowza.  There’s quite a collection here, one that definitely can take some time; as such, I’m doing the dutiful copy-and-paste from the studio’s press release previously published on Blu-ray.com:
​

• DOUBLE FEATURE RELEASE
• NEW 4K RESTORATION OF THE CREATURE WITH THE BLUE HAND
• NEW 4K RESTORATION OF WEB OF THE SPIDER
• Creature with the Blue Hand full length commentary track
• Web of the Spider full length commentary track
• Included HD film, 'The Bloody Dead (1987),' from Independent International Pictures which added scenes for the home video release
• Essays by Christopher Stewardson and Nick Clarke
• All new documentary on Edgar Wallace
• Archival commentary by Samuel M. Sherman
• Original theatrical trailer from 35mm for Creature with the Blue Hand
• Reimagined trailer for Web of the Spider using restored elements

 
For clarity’s sake, let me explain something a bit further: my review is of Creature’s original 1967 theatrical release.  There is an alternate version on here – 1987’s The Bloody Hand – which was a somewhat re-styled incarnation along with newly-inserted gore footage directed by Samuel M. Sherman.  If I review that production, then I’ll cover it in a separate review installment on the website.
 
Alas … only Mildly Recommended.
 
Though I had a bit of fun with Creature With The Blue Hand (1967), that merriment was really only experienced in small doses.  What I enjoyed were the production details – those mentioned above – and the unpredictability of its labyrinth plot.  While I wouldn’t say the flick had any singular performances in it (Kinski is very sedate compared to what I’ve seen him do elsewhere) worthy of note, I’d also point out everyone pretty much hit their marks and did affable with what the murky script asked from them.  Beyond the cleverness of a few scenes and the spectacularly cool Emerson mansion, I just found little in here to celebrate … and that’s disappointing.
 
In the interest of fairness, I’m pleased to disclose that the fine folks at Film Masters provided me with a complimentary Blu-ray of Creature With The Blue Hand (1967) by request for the expressed purpose of completing this review.  Their contribution to me in no way, shape, or form influenced my opinion of it.

-- EZ 
​

Good grief!  Has it been 25 years already?

Where oh where does the time go?

I realize that you young'uns reading this probably don't exactly share those sentiments; but that's only because you haven't enjoyed as many trips around the sun as the rest of us have.  Don't worry: it'll catch up to us all eventually, and -- in the meantime -- can I bring you up-to-speed on a little something-something I had the pleasure of seeing theatrically back in 1999?  Written (in part) and directed by David Koepp, Stir Of Echoes was a Horror/Thriller that dabbled with the impossible in ways that defied conventional screen magic.  Starring the ageless Kevin Bacon, the film garnered some positive reviews and went on to be a small(ish) box office success, earning a respectable $24M (domestic) on a reported $12M budget.

Lo and behold, it's getting a splendid makeover to celebrate its twenty-fifth birthday as the people at Lionsgate are rolling out all the stops.  I'm doing the dutiful copy-and-paste below of their supplied press release.  Interested parties are encouraged to put in an order early as this might be the kind of thing that disappears from shelves fairly quickly.

You know what to do.

-- EZ
​

​PROGRAM DESCRIPTION
Academy Award® nominee Kevin Bacon stars in Stir of Echoes, a psychological thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat. Tom Witzky (Bacon) is a blue-collar family man whose world is turned upside down after being hypnotized at a party. Opening a gateway to the supernatural, Tom begins experiencing terrifying visions and becomes obsessed with uncovering a long-buried secret in his Chicago neighborhood. As reality blurs with the paranormal, Tom's descent into madness becomes inevitable. Stir of Echoes arrives on Steelbook® on Amazon from Lionsgate, available in 4K for the first time for its 25th anniversary, featuring exclusive artwork and new bonus content. Available only at Amazon for the suggested retail price of $34.99.
 
OFFICIAL SYNOPSIS
Tom Witzky (Kevin Bacon) is a blue-collar worker, a family man, the most ordinary guy in the world...who is about to be plunged into a shattering encounter with another world. And it doesn't matter that Tom doesn't believe in the supernatural. Because something supernatural has started to believe in Tom. After he is hypnotized at a neighborhood party, Tom changes. He sees things he can't explain and hears voices he can't ignore. As the horrific visions intensify, Tom realizes they are pieces of a puzzle, echoes of a crime calling out to be solved. But when his other-worldly nightmares begin coming true, Tom wants out. He desperately tries to rid himself of his eerie, unwanted powers - only to be seized by an irresistible compulsion to dig deeper and deeper into the mystery that is consuming his life. When at last he unearths the truth, it will draw him into the long-buried secret of a ghastly crime, a vengeful spirit...and the lethal price of laying that spirit to rest.
 
CAST
Kevin Bacon (Footloose, Hollow Man, The Woodsman, Mystic River)
Kathryn Erbe (“Law & Order: Criminal Intent,” What About Bob? D2: The Mighty Ducks)
Illeana Douglas (To Die For, The New Guy, Ghost World)
Kevin Dunn (Transformers, Warrior, Chain Reaction, Dave)
  
SPECIAL FEATURES
Audio Commentary with Director David Koepp
Visions of the Past: Re-visiting Stir of Echoes (2024 NEW featurette)
Establishing Shot with Fred Murphy (2024 NEW featurette)
Flipping the Switch: Directing Stir of Echoes
Maggie's Memories: Inside Stir of Echoes
Opening the Door: Designing Stir of Echoes
Making of Stir of Echoes
Sight of Spirits: Channeling the Paranormal
Behind the Echoes
The Mind's Eye: Beneath the Trance
Special Effects
Production Design
Interviews with Cast and Crew
Behind the Scenes
Scene Comparisons
Screen Tests
Deleted Scenes
Promotional Materials
Breathe Original Music Video
Theatrical Trailer
 
PROGRAM INFORMATION
Year of Production: 1999
Title Copyright:  Stir of Echoes © 1999 Artisan Pictures Inc. All Rights Reserved Package Design and Summary ®, ™ & © 2024 Lions Gate Entertainment Inc. All Rights Reserved
Type: Catalog Re-Release
Rating: R
Genre: Mystery, Horror, Thriller
Closed-Captioned: N/A
Subtitles: Spanish, English SDH
Run Time: 94 minutes
4K Format: TBC
4K Audio: TBC
BD Format: 2160P High Definition • 16x9 (1.85:1) Presentation
BD Audio: English Dolby Atmos
​

Can I ask you: who among us doesn't love a good Apocalypse?

Frankly, as long as films have been in production, audiences have flocked to those pictures detailing the end of all things; and such productions continue to have legs well into the modern age.  Why, it seems like every time one turns around they're hit with another one; and I, for one, am glad that special effects wizardry continues to push the envelope in ways that make our collective demise look better and better with each successive outing.

In any event ...

I received the press materials for the forthcoming Beyond The Wasteland (2023) -- which was formerly released under the name M -- and I wanted to pass them along to the readership.  This one looks like a more personal story -- one with solid Horror overtones -- and I'll be posting the trailer below after the press blurbs.  You folks know what to do about that.
​
-- EZ 
​

​​PLANO, TEXAS (October 17, 2024) – In a world ravaged by a deadly virus, a young boy is faced with losing everything as he journeys through a shattered world, shrouded in silence and overtaken by the infected and the conflict-torn remnants of humanity in the award-winning sci-fi horror-thriller BEYOND THE WASTELAND (formerly titled M), debuting on Digital November 5 from Well Go USA Entertainment. The sophomore feature by Vardan Tozija, the film stars Matej Sivakov (Marko), Sashko Kocev (Marko's father), Aleksandar Nicovski (Miko), Kamka Tocinovski (Miko's mother), Bojana Gregoric Vejzovic, and Verica Nedeska (Marko's mother). BEYOND THE WASTELAND received the coveted and rarely awarded Programmers’ Choice Award at the 26th Annual Dances With Films: NY., the city’s leading indie film festival. In addition, the film was awarded a Special Mention/Balkan Competition and nominated for the Grand Prix at the Sofia International Film Festival. ​The film lands on Blu-ray™ January 7.
 
Synopsis:       
Deep in a secluded forest, Marko lives in isolation under the watchful eye of his overprotective father, who is determined to keep his young son safe from the Evil Ones. Deeply lonely, and increasingly curious about the outside world, Marko yearns to uncover the secrets of life beyond the forest and begins venturing further from home. But after a cruel turn of events grants his wish sooner than he ever imagined, Marko is forced to flee and embark on a grim journey filled with unknown dangers and a glimpse into a world forever changed.
​

Good morning, ladies, gentlemen, and ghouls!

Well, well, well ... the silly season is upon us once more ... and, no, I'm not talking about the December holidays.  No, I'm actually talking about the time of year when frights and fools come centerstage: it's Halloween, and I couldn't be happier about it!  How about you?

I know, I know, I know: but we had a Halloween last year?  Must we do it again this year?  Yes, we must.  It's a moral imperative to work as hard as possible in scaring one another silly.  That's what we do culturally, and you should consider it SciFiHistory.Net approved!

I haven't had many new trailers to post as of late.  I've been offline dealing with some other whatnot, folks, and when that happens the first thing to go from my schedule are these fun little posts.  Still, as time permits, I'll be popping by throwing out a few reminders, announcements, and the like.  Why?  Well, because you deserve it.  As you know, I do my very best to keep you informed on things in the realms of the Fantastic ... and as someone in the entertainment industry has contacted me with a request to serve up an announcement for Hulu's Carved -- which, incidentally, looks to premiere on this day, I thought it only appropriate to pass along the information to you, my faithful readers.

Written (in part) and directed by Justin Harding, here's the plot summary as provided by our friends at IMDB.com:

"A group of survivors finds themselves trapped in a historical reenactment village on Halloween, where they must unite to battle a sentient, vengeful pumpkin."

For those of you who might be interested, here's the trailer below.  You know what to do.
​

As always, thanks for reading ... thanks for sharing ... thanks for being a fan ... and live long and prosper!

-- EZ
​

(Editor’s Note: In case the preamble to this review sounds familiar, that’s because I’ve copied & posted it from a previous review regarding this forthcoming DVD release.  As this is the second film in the set, the review below will be original and correspond to my thoughts on that feature.)
 
As much as I love Horror stories from around the world, I’ll still admit that I’ve always had a bit of a struggle with traditional Japanese ghost stories.
 
It isn’t that I dislike them because that’s about as far from the truth as one could get.  Still, I’ve had issues with a good many of the ones I’ve seen over the years for many reasons.  In some cases, ghosts steal too much of the focus, so I get to learn very little about the fleshy folks who encounter them.  At other times, the background and/or mythology of just how these ghosts came to be is a bit elusive if not downright vague; and, thus, I struggle to understand the significance of this particular story or that particular spectral ability.  In their defense, I’ve always remarked that they’re usually very stylish, and their producers go to great lengths to depict this bridging between two realities in wonderfully visual ways: but if I can’t relate to the characters in any meaningful way then it devolves into a great deal of pomp and circumstance that, frankly, I could do without.  They’re good … but they’re not good enough.
 
This being October – that famed time of year with ghosts and goblins and ghouls take center stage – I do have a good number of releases on tap for my and your enjoyment; and I’m particularly thrilled that the fine folks at Radiance Films have provided me with a complimentary screening copy of their forthcoming Daiei Gothic: Japanese Ghost Stories.  This set – which is advertised to release to the consumer marketplace on October 29, 2024 – showcases three films that I’ve heard of but never had the pleasure to watch much less review; and that’s about to change.  I’ll be spending some time with it in the days ahead, so I encourage readers to watch this space for what promises to be some wonderfully spooky content to help set the mood for the forthcoming Halloween silly season.
 
Next up: 1959’s The Ghost Of Yotsuya is a cinematic adaptation of the kabuki play, Yotsuya Kaidan, apparently a very popular Japanese ghost story that has enjoyed multiple screen editions from multiple directors.  From what I’ve read online, this version appears to be one of the most popular incarnations – if, indeed, not the most popular – and it was directed by the prolific storyteller Nobuo Nakagawa.  The film starred Shigeru Amachi as the doomed ronin eventually complicit in the murder of his wife Oiwa (Kazuko Wakasugi) who eventually rises from the beyond to extract her form of revenge on the man.
 
(NOTE: The following review will contain minor spoilers necessary solely for the discussion of plot and/or characters.  If you’re the type of reader who prefers a review entirely spoiler-free, then I’d encourage you to skip down to the last few paragraphs for the final assessment.  If, however, you’re accepting of a few modest hints at ‘things to come,’ then read on …)
​

From the film’s IMDB.com page citation:
“The ghost of a samurai's wife takes revenge on her husband.”
 
Please trust me when I say that there’s a bit more complexity to the plot as IMDB.com would have you believe.
 
Indeed, what emerges from The Ghost Of Yotsuya is something that is theatrically remarkable in that it fairly accurately mirrors the structure of a three-act play – Act One introduces the players, Act Two heightens the conflicts, and Act Three functions mostly just to bring it all to a close – along with some respectable character development.  The audience learns more about Tamiya Iemon (played by Amachi) and Oiwa (Wakasugi) as the drama unfolds; and yet I thought there still remained a strange emptiness to understanding Tamiya’s real motivation given all that he experiences.  Granted, the film closes with a kinda/sorta display that – so far as his deceased wife is concerned – he’s achieved redemption; but I still would’ve liked to have known a bit more about his make-up as the first and second acts were a bit uneven.
 
(Editor’s note: I find it interesting – only as an aside – to point out that the original play upon which the film is based is, in fact, cited as having five acts on Wikipedia.org.  I can’t speak to how that might mirror the film’s narrative structure as, for me, the three-act association works ideally.)
 
When we first meet Tamiya, he’s a bit full of himself, showing up at her father’s palace asking for her hand in marriage.  After he is refused and insulted, he ends up murdering the older man and he collaborates with another to cover up his misdeeds in such a way that Oiwa falls in love with him, paving the way for their nuptials.  Sadly, it isn’t long into their marital relationship that the samurai decides he covets a different woman – Oume (Junko Ikeuchi) – to be his bride, and this leads him to conspire once more with the scheming Naosuke (Shuntarô Emi) with a new plot, this one casting Oiwa in an adulterous relationship with the lowly servant/friend Takuetsu (Jun Ôtomo).  Such a betrayal can only result in their shared deaths, leaving Tamiya now free to act on his feelings for Oume.
 
Well, this is a ghost story, after all, and it’s at this point – fairly late in the picture, I might add – that the supernatural skullduggery begins.  The spectrally reanimated Oiwa infects the mind of her murderous husband, producing hallucinations which force him to draw his sword in perceived defense against her ghostly form again and again, actions which results in a growing number of victims.  While the wait for some samurai action and the narrative payoff was quite long, the closing twenty minutes are a legitimate ‘fever dream’ experience.  Unable to escape not even his guilty conscience, Tamiya Iemon eventually lies dead on the floor wherein the ghostly form of his late wife virtually embraces him – via her haunted kimono – in the closing scenes.
​

While I have read some online commentary suggesting that this adaptation from stage-to-screen is a bit risky (stage plays don’t work in the same striking fashion that films can employ enhanced visual trickery), I thought the structure worked quite well.  It all has the feel of that classic theatrical structure I mentioned above, and the measure of conniving maneuvers was definitely reminiscent of even, say, Shakespeare’s Iago, Claudius, or Lady Macbeth.  Granted, it could’ve used a bit of polish here and there – Naosuke seems to be a bit of a conspirator for no pronounced reason other than the fact that the story needed one – but the puzzle pieces go together quite nicely to assemble the completed whole.
 
Still, my greatest problem – besides the fact that two-thirds of the picture is far more melodrama than anything else – is with the central character of Tamiya Iemon.
 
As he is arguably the picture’s lead, I would’ve expected there to be a bit more explanation behind what makes the samurai tick.  Because I’ve watched a good number of samurai pictures, I have preconceived notions about what they stand for; and things like justice, integrity, and honor immediately spring to mind.  Because Tamiya is a ronin – meaning a ‘masterless’ samurai – it stands to reason that he’s sadly inherited a bit of failure along the way.  But did he kill his former master?  What were the circumstances of that man’s disappearance?  (If it was explained, then I’ll admit to having fully missed it, a reality that can sometimes happen with translations.)   Certainly, something must account for Tamiya’s restlessness – both as a warrior and a husband – but the script really provides no explanation.  For me, that was a void that should’ve been filled.
 
Of course, I’m not trying to suggest that The Ghost Of Yotsuya is a flawed picture.  It’s understandable to see why Nakagawa’s adaptation is highly regarded: while I found it personally a bit slow in the set-up, there were a great number of details established surrounding its characters, setting, and circumstances, and that takes time.  My complaint is that I kept looking for a greater explanation as to why Tamiya was a bit of a jerk more often than not, and that question was never satisfactorily answered in any way.  Having painted him as an antihero may’ve worked fine for some, but I expected a bit more clarity given the fact that I spent so much time with him.  In the end, he remains as nebulous as his is villainous, and I find that incomplete.
​

The Ghost Of Yotsuya (1959) was produced by Shintoho Film Distribution Committee.  DVD release (for this particular release) has been coordinated by the fine folks at Radiance Films.  As for the technical specifications?  While I’m no trained video expert, I found the provided sights-and-sounds to be very good from start-to-finish: there’s some really good visual trickery showcased once Tamiya’s mind goes black, and Nakagawa really managed to capture good lightning in a bottle when necessary.  Lastly, if you’re looking for special features?  In order to be specific, I’m doing the dutiful copy-and-paste from the company previously press release published on Blu-ray.com below:
​

• New interview with filmmaker Kiyoshi Kurosawa
• A visual essay on the history and adaptations of the classic Ghost of Yotsuya story by author Kyoko Hirano
• Trailer
• Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Filippo Di Battista

 
As I was provided with an industry copy, I always remind readers that I’m not typically provided the physical inserts, booklets, and artwork.  As such, I can’t speak about the efficacy of those items.
 
Alas … only Mildly Recommended.
 
With respect to The Ghost Of Yotsuya (1959), I have to admit to being a bit underwhelmed.  While it’s an exceedingly well-made film, the story simply never moved me in the same way other pictures have; and I kept questioning what in the name of Sam Hill was going on in the mind of Tamiya Iemon.  While I think it’s perfectly fine to engage the audience with the degree of set-up required for the last act’s pay-off, I still can’t help but wonder about why this man did what he did.  Filling that one simply hole might’ve made for a better viewing, but in lieu of any sufficient explanation all I’m left with is wonder.  Great ghost bits … but I needed a touch more with the living and breathing souls who made this one what it was.
 
In the interests of fairness, I’m pleased to disclose that the fine folks at Radiance Films provided me with a complimentary Blu-ray copy of The Ghost Of Yotsuya (1959) – as part of their Daiei Gothic: Japanese Ghost Stories – by request for the expressed purpose of completing this review.  Their contribution to me in no way, shape, or form influenced my opinion of it.

-- EZ
​

(NOTE: The following review will contain minor spoilers necessary solely for the discussion of plot and/or characters.  If you’re the type of reader who prefers a review entirely spoiler-free, then I’d encourage you to skip down to the last few paragraphs for the final assessment.  If, however, you’re accepting of a few modest hints at ‘things to come,’ then read on …)
 
From the film’s IMDB.com page citation:
“Five Halloween stories: A principal has a secret life, a virgin is looking for her first time, a group of kids pull a prank, a woman who loathes Halloween does not respect the rules and a mean old man meets a demonic trick-or-treater.”
 
As I’ve often said in reviews on SciFiHistory.Net, I’m an admitted fan of anthologies.
 
To me, the theatrical anthology is no different than the literary collection of short stories, all gathered around a central theme or shared idea that delivers a variety of content as opposed to the traditional flick that, largely, explores a single concept.  For that reason, audiences are given access to what could be performances that truly explore the spectrum of what’s possible – highs, lows, manic, depraved, subdued, etc. – paired up with shorter tales that might only have circumstantial overlap but thematically exist in the same cinematic universe.  As a consequence, it’s easier to overlook some minor quibbles or the random narrative blemish because the next installment up might redeem the experience, allowing the good, the bad, and the ugly to balance out in the process.  Of course, that isn’t always the case, but I’ve seen it happen more often than not.
 
To my surprise, I’d somehow completely missed 2007’s Trick’r’Treat, a shared universe yarn of dark delights all set in the fictional little ‘burb named Warren Valley, Ohio.  Written and directed by Michael Dougherty – an award-winning writer, director, and producer whose name shows attached to such other entries as Superman Returns (2006), Krampus (2015), X-Men: Apocalypse (2016), and Godzilla: King Of The Monsters (2019) amongst others – the story cleverly weaves together five loosely-separate adventures into one seamless Halloween night ditty with some surprisingly deft overlap.  Suffice it to say, it’s exactly the kind of picture that rewards not only those watching closely but also those who like to go back and revisit its lean and mean 82 minutes: dare I say that you’ll be surprised at how much more connective tissue you catch on subsequent viewings when you know some of what’s about to unfurl?
​

Because this one both is and isn’t the typical anthology, I’ll dispense with any meaningful dissection of the plot.  Instead, let me just give you the lowdown on its individual installments and then I’ll tell you what I think is special or noteworthy afterwards.

• Emma & Henry are the typical American couple.  He loves Halloween but she’s a bit unimpressed with it all.  Before midnight strikes, Emma might have committed the ultimate offense against traditions, and the price might be her very life as a consequence.
• The Principal pulls back the curtain on Steven Wilkins – the local school principal – and the man’s private life, showing that not all professionals who work with children have their best interests in mind 24/7.  In fact, some of them might just be a bit deadly.
• Like a split personality, the School Bus Massacre actually bridges two tales into one.  A past tragedy detailed as a local legend comes back to haunt today’s youth when they attempt to prank one of their own who may or may not have her own little secret to hide.
• Surprise Party explores what four young women hungry for a little something extra might do to have their appetites fulfilled, even though the youngest in the group is a bit hesitant to take the big first step into … ahem … maturity.
• Sam & Kreeg shows what happens when two opposing forces come together – in the most traditional Horror story in here – for the purpose of accounting for souls lost in the aforementioned School Bus Massacre.  It’s a dark trip, one that ends exactly the way viewers will likely expect.

 
Now, any respectable anthology is going to have its share of imperfections.  Storytelling is rarely perfect; and theatrical versions especially are tied to ensuring that hundreds if not thousands of simultaneously moving pieces get put in the proper order alongside the proper context.  Surprisingly, Trick’r’Treat manages to sidestep any massive stumbling blocks – even more impressive when one imagines all of the post-production editing that had to take place for this to bond the way it does – and it manages to use its visual, pacing, and performances to maximum effect.  Admittedly, the creation of Sam – a bit of a supernatural entity making the most of his All Souls’ Eve – is the lynchpin holding a good deal of the stuffing in place; and none of us would’ve worked as well have Dougherty tried to dance to a different tune in his delightful mirth.
 
Still, I’m finding it a bit difficult to praise everything here.
​

While he’s good at portraying the principal with an unstated passion for bloody mayhem, Dylan Baker feels a bit uninspired here.  Though he handled a few of the scenes with some ironic nuance in just the right measure, he’s unfortunately saddled with a kinda/sorta second half to his individual chapter that gets a bit too goofy.  The bit of burying his victims in the backyard is a bit too expected, I think, and his chapter in this bloody book winds up feeling a bit shoddily strung together. 

Similarly, Anna Paquin has built her entire career around playing the bit-too-wholesome girl-next-door; and she turns similarly themed work here as Laurie, the will-she-won’t-see young maiden who initially gets painted like a damsel-in-distress who can secretly more than take care of herself.  Granted, she’s given a nice spin – once you know what you know you’re apt to go back and reexamine her story for clues you might have missed – but, again, it isn’t as if she hasn’t done this before. 

​Lastly, screen veteran Brian Cox – in the pivotal role of Kreeg – is so good here that audiences might wish he was afforded an entire stand-alone feature, one that could’ve expanded even on Sam’s parallel story in a loose origins-style picture.  Don’t misunderstand: it’s great that he’s in this, but Cox’s segment was the only one that I truly wanted to spend more time with.  That’s rare – especially in anthologies – so it deserves a mention in this space.
 
How oh how did I miss this production for so long?  I’ve read that its theatrical run suffered some considerable delay – I can understand why a studio’s legal wizards might’ve taken issue with some of the pieces – but apparently the film has racked up fans upon fans since fully being launched into the entertainment stratosphere.  Honestly, it’s easy to see why – holiday sendups are usually embraced by us for cultural reasons – especially given the fact that its practical effects work is spectacular, there isn’t a bad performance in here, and the affectionate and dismembering treatment of Halloween is both pleasurable and relevant.  There’s truly a great deal of polish to this effort, and I’m highly recommending it to all interested readers.
​

​Trick’r’Treat (2007) was produced by Warner Bros., Legendary Entertainment, Bad Hat Harry Productions, British Columbia Film Commission, and Little Sam Films.  DVD distribution (for this particular release) has been coordinated by the fine folks at Arrow Films.  As for the technical specifications?  While I’m no trained video expert … wow.  This film looks and sounds phenomenal.  There are a good portion of practical in-camera effects work, and they look stunning.  Lastly, if you’re looking for special features?  Well, this is Arrow Films, and – thus far – they’ve yet to disappoint me.  In order to be as specific as possible, I’m doing the dutiful copy-and-paste from their press materials previously published on Blu-ray.com:
​

• Brand new 4K restoration by Arrow Films, approved by writer-director Michael Dougherty
• Dolby Vision/HDR grade
• Original DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround and 2.0 stereo audio
• Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
• Archival audio commentary by Michael Dougherty, conceptual artist Breehn Burns, storyboard artist Simeon Wilkins and composer Douglas Pipes
• Tales of Folklore & Fright, an archival featurette with Michael Dougherty, Breehn Burns and Simeon Wilkins
• Tales of Mischief & Mayhem: Filming Trick 'r Treat, an archival interview with Michael Dougherty on the making of the film
• Sounds of Shock & Superstition: Scoring Trick 'r Treat, an archival featurette with Michael Dougherty and Douglas Pipes
• Tales of Dread & Despair: Releasing Trick 'r Treat, an archival featurette with Michael Dougherty and Rob Galluzzo of the Shock Waves podcast, exploring the film's release and fandom
• Season's Greetings, a short film from 1996 directed by Michael Dougherty with optional director commentary
• The Lore and Legends of Halloween, an archival featurette narrated by actor Brian Cox
• School bus VFX comparison
• Additional scenes
• Sam O'Lantern
• Storyboard and conceptual artwork gallery
• Behind the scenes gallery
• Monster Mash comic book set in the Trick 'r Treat universe
• Trailer
• Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Sara Deck
• Double-sided foldout poster featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Sara Deck
• Six postcard-sized artcards
• Illustrated collector's booklet featuring new writing on the film by Becky Darke and Heather Wixson

​

As the only qualifier I’d throw in regarding this assortment, I’m provided an industry-issued copy of the disc alone: therefore, I can’t speak to the efficacy of any of the materials like artwork, postcards, booklets, etc.  That is always a ‘buyer beware’ reminder.  I have listened to the all-new commentary track (thus far), and while it’s occasionally interesting I find it a bit too conversational without a lot of facts that I like.  Perhaps those will be found on the archival commentary track I’ve yet to explore.
 
Highly Recommended.
 
As much as I like strong storytelling, I have an even deeper admiration for visual cleverness; and – on that point alone – Trick’r’Treat excels.  While some might figure that it’s easy-peasy to craft a grand Hallows’ Eve tale involving the young and the old, the truth here is that Dougherty very smartly achieves some astonishing tonal balance in quality by smartly linking these seemingly disparate chapters into an inseparable whole.  True, you might have to be watching closely to see where one journey intersects with the others; but – come the finish – there’s no denying that much any other holiday feature Halloween offers intelligent storytellers with the opportunity to do something special if they’re willing to put in the effort.  And the reward just might be producing one of the brightest Cult films of record.
 
In the interests of fairness, I’m pleased to disclose that the fine folks at Arrow Films provided me with a complimentary 4K UltraHD Blu-ray copy of Trick’r’Treat (2007) by request for the expressed purpose of completing this review.  Their contribution to me in no way, shape, or form influenced my opinion of it.

-- EZ
​

Each of us has that friend – that one friend – who lives and dies attached to a particular franchise.  Be it Horror, Fantasy, or Science Fiction, everything about this one intellectual property appeals to him, no matter how good, bad, great, acceptable, astounding, or lukewarm the final product truly is.  He’s what you call that ‘die-hard fanatic’ – a true-blue enthusiast of the highest order – and no matter how you might try to convince him that, say, his film set may’ve had an inferior outing he’s convinced otherwise.  It consumes him.  He studies its minutiae.  He owns every single home video release – sometimes in multiple copies – and it’s all he’ll talk about if you dare to give him the chance.
 
For me, my friend worships the wide, wide world of Hellraiser … and – dammit all – I just can’t see why.
 
It’s a property that just escapes me.  What of it I’ve seen is – at best – good, but the stories and characters just don’t resonate on any conceivable level.  While I’ll concede that the practical effects work has largely been very good, indeed, that just isn’t enough to make me want to commit so much of my own personal gray matter to contemplating it any further than the occasional casual viewing.  For clarity’s sake: I don’t dislike it.  But because I have that friend – that one friend – who eats, sleeps, and breathes the sum of its existence, I have given it more than a passing glance for no other reason than to try to understand perhaps just what I’m missing.
 
But, hey, to each his own … right?
 
In any event, I sat down yesterday with a brand-spanking-new industry copy of Hellbound: Hellraiser II (1988) in glorious 4K from the good people at Arrow Films.  Directed by Tony Randel from a story by Peter Atkins and franchise creator Clive Barker, the Horror/Fantasy brings back Ashley Laurence in the lead and a few familiar faces from Hell itself (or is that Hell-adjacent?) along with a new supporting cast of disposable characters.  It picks up only moments after the first film’s ending; and it puts our beloved Kirsty on a path wherein she’ll confront the Cenobites again but this time she’ll need a little help from a friend in order to set things right.
 
(NOTE: The following review will contain minor spoilers necessary solely for the discussion of plot and/or characters.  If you’re the type of reader who prefers a review entirely spoiler-free, then I’d encourage you to skip down to the last few paragraphs for the final assessment.  If, however, you’re accepting of a few modest hints at ‘things to come,’ then read on …)
 
From the film’s IMDB.com page citation:
“Kirsty is brought to an institution after the horrible events of Hellraiser (1987), where the occult-obsessive head doctor resurrects Julia and unleashes the Cenobites and their demonic underworld.”
​

When we last saw Kirsty (played by Laurence), her dear father had departed our world – the skin ripped from his body and placed atop her lecherous Uncle Frank (Sean Chapman) in his bid to reanimate into our plane of existence to further explore the limits of his carnal desires – and she had outfoxed Pinhead, Butterball, Chatterer, and the – ahem – unnamed female Cenobite, sending them back emptyhanded to wherever they came from.  In a brief coda to the film, we see that the puzzle box – the key to and from their dark world – survives and is presumably back in the hands of some Middle Eastern merchant who offers it up to another customer.  But for all intents and purposes it seemed as if the lovely lady had survived and – one would hope – had moved on with her life.
 
However, the opening to Hellbound: Hellraiser II kinda/sorta recasts that ending: Kirsty awakens, locked into an insane asylum, where an insistent police detective is questioning her about what happened in her father’s home as well as the potential whereabouts of any other person involved.  (Erm … didn’t the place collapse?  Wasn’t it completely destroyed?)  As fate would have it, the house is still around, and the investigation has produced a wealth of bodies along with the bloodied mattress upon which Kirsty’s stepmother Julia (Clare Higgins) properly deflowered herself with stepbrother Frank and apparently died.  (Erm … wasn’t she stabbed on the staircase?  Did she not die right there?)
 
In any event, I’d never insist Kirsty couldn’t benefit from a psych eval, so good on scripters Barker and Atkins for changing the mold just a bit.  Dr. Channard (Kenneth Cranham) expresses an interest in speaking with the young woman; and – along with his assistance Kyle MacRae (William Hope) – they go about exploring what men both dismiss as a somewhat wild tale that might suggest Kirsty needs an extended stay.  However, it isn’t long before MacRae begins to privately question his boss’ fascination with such dark details; and the young professional eventually learns that Channard has been previously investigating Pinhead and the other world for what appears to be many, many years.
 
If all of this sounds confusing, then that’s mostly because it is.
​

As a Horror, Hellraiser worked because it took the steps necessary to establish this particular cinematic universe rather efficiently while introducing audiences to the key players.  Some might argue that it didn’t always add up perfectly; and, yet the founding film still knew precisely what it wanted to be and delivered on that premise.  By contrast, Hellbound – by virtue of things I’ve already pointed out – reshaped some of those particulars and then expanded this mythology with huge, somewhat cumbersome steps that come off more as a screenwriter’s invention than any smooth second chapter.  While it’s easy to accept the somewhat dark but charming invitation to Uncle Frank and his dark practices in Part One, right out of the gate Part Two suggests that not only was Frank deeply immersed in this subversive folklore but also a renowned psychotherapist in the same town was even more intensely involved.  If you can swallow that nugget easily, then take a look at this bridge I have to sell, will you?
 
I know, I know, I know.  I hear you, I hear you, I hear you.  “But it’s only a movie!”
 
While that might be true, movies still have to make sense.
 
The various bits and all of the puzzle pieces need to assemble in workable fashion and not feel like we, the audience, are getting an all-new information dump necessary to expand the universe for new additions.  What you might decry as nitpicking I expect as competent world-building, and that just doesn’t happen comfortably and sensibly between these first two installments of the Horror property.  While the addition of Tiffany (Imogen Boorman) – a fellow psychiatric inmate who is kinda/sorta mute (yet not) but demonstrates an affinity for puzzle-solving which makes her a perfect specimen for Dr. Channard and his dark obsession – is handled quite well, everything else about Hellbound is clunky at best.  Like the first film, it’s visually interesting, but it lacks fundamental cohesiveness and sufficient enough explanation for why this broad expansion of the core mythology was chucked into a second chapter.  Some of it feels like it’s setting up for something bigger, though – for the life of me – I can’t quite figure out what that might be.
 
Even worse, Hellbound delivers the massive narrative setback – so far as this reviewer is concerned – that Pinhead and the gang just aren’t nearly as powerful as Hellraiser led us to believe they were.  In a weird development, Channard winds up somehow being a veritable master over this twisted cosmos after he’s seduced by Julia – once she’s back in the flesh – and sacrificed to a Hellish entity known as the Leviathan.  Apparently, it is more powerful than the Cenobites; and – in the process of being converted into his new celestial form – the good doctor becomes the caretaker of this level of the Underworld, dispatching the franchise’s villains with little more than the flick of his now gruesome fingers.
​

Sadly, the flick never quite recovers from these structural flaws. Though its pacing is solid and there’s a respectable vicarious delight at traversing the resulting hellscape (which, confusingly, is little more than 90% dirty hallways), Hellbound is far from spellbound with the intense, dark magic that made Hellraiser minimally worth the time and trouble.  The film just never rises above feeling like a hodgepodge of ideas in search of some way to still present its two likeable female leads with a somewhat requisite happy ending.  It both does and it doesn’t, and I still feel cheated in the process.
 
Hellbound: Hellraiser II (1988) was produced by Film Futures, Cinemarque Entertainment, and Troopstar.  DVD distribution (for this particular release) has been coordinated by the fine folks at Arrow Films.  As for the technical specifications?  While I’m no trained video expert, I found the provided sights-and-sounds to be very good from start-to-finish.  There are a few sequences with some rather obvious grain, so I can only assume that the deficiency is owed to an inferior master.  There are also a few short bits of – ahem – rather obvious special effects that could’ve been a bit better.  Lastly, if you’re looking for special features?  This is Arrow Films, and they never disappoint.  In order to be precise, I’m doing the dutiful copy-and-paste from their press materials published on Blu-ray.com:
​

• Brand new audio commentary featuring Stephen Jones and Kim Newman
• Archival audio commentary with director Tony Randel, writer Peter Atkins and actor Ashley Laurence
• Audio commentary with director Tony Randel and writer Peter Atkins
• Hell Was What They Wanted! – brand new 80-minute appreciation of Hellbound, the Hellraiser mythos and the work of Clive Barker by horror authors George Daniel Lea (Born in Blood) and Kit Power (The Finite)
• That Rat-Slice Sound – brand new appreciation of composer Christopher Young's scores for Hellraiser and Hellbound: Hellraiser II by Guy Adams
• Archival on-set interview with Clive Barker
• Archival on-set interview with cast and crew
• Behind the scenes footage
• Being Frank: Sean Chapman on Hellbound – archival interview about the actor's return to the role of Frank Cotton
• Under the Skin: Doug Bradley on Hellbound – archival interview with the iconic actor about his second appearance as 'Pinhead'
• Lost in the Labyrinth – archival featurette featuring interviews with Barker, Randel, Keen, Atkins and others
• Trailers and TV spots
• Image gallery

​

Alas, only ... Mildly Recommended.
 
While I’m never been a big fan of the wider Hellraiser Cinematic Universe anyway, I’m still a bit disappointed with what Clive Barker and the gang foisted on us with Hellbound: Hellraiser II (1988).  Though I’ve no problem with the somewhat rejiggered state of affairs between the first film and the second, Hellbound never quite respectfully plots a new course, instead mashing in new characters alongside familiar faces with what feels ham-handed at best.  Sure, it’s always great to see the world expand, but it still should be done organically.  Far too much of this feels like it was tossed into the mix because “audiences will find this cool,” and that’s a cheap distraction from what could’ve been a more logical step forward.
 
In the interests of fairness, I’m pleased to disclose that the fine folks at Arrow Films provided me with a complimentary 4K UltraHD Blu-ray of Hellbound: Hellraiser II (1988) – as part of their Hellraiser: Quartet Of Torment Collection – by request for the expressed purpose of completing this review.  Their contribution to me in no way, shape, or form influenced my opinion of it.

-- EZ
​

As much as I love Horror stories from around the world, I’ll still admit that I’ve always had a bit of a struggle with traditional Japanese ghost stories.
 
It isn’t that I dislike them because that’s about as far from the truth as one could get.  Still, I’ve had issues with a good many of the ones I’ve seen over the years for many reasons.  In some cases, ghosts steal too much of the focus, so I get to learn very little about the fleshy folks who encounter them.  At other times, the background and/or mythology of just how these ghosts came to be is a bit elusive if not downright vague; and, thus, I struggle to understand the significance of this particular story or that particular spectral ability.  In their defense, I’ve always remarked that they’re usually very stylish, and their producers go to great lengths to depict this bridging between two realities in wonderfully visual ways: but if I can’t relate to the characters in any meaningful way then it devolves into a great deal of pomp and circumstance that, frankly, I could do without.  They’re good … but they’re not good enough.
 
This being October – that famed time of year with ghosts and goblins and ghouls take center stage – I do have a good number of releases on tap for my and your enjoyment; and I’m particularly thrilled that the fine folks at Radiance Films have provided me with a complimentary screening copy of their forthcoming Daiei Gothic: Japanese Ghost Stories.  This set – which is advertised to release to the consumer marketplace on October 29, 2024 – showcases three films that I’ve heard of but never had the pleasure to watch much less review; and that’s about to change.  I’ll be spending some time with it in the days ahead, so I encourage readers to watch this space for what promises to be some wonderfully spooky content to help set the mood for the forthcoming Halloween silly season.
 
First up: 1968’s The Snow Woman is a cinematic adaptation of the Japanese dark fairy tale directed by Tokuzô Tanaka.  The script shows attached to Lafcadio Hearn and Fuji Yahiro, and the motion picture stars Shiho Fujimura, Akira Ishihama, Machiko Hasegawa, Taketoshi Naitô, and Mizuho Suzuki.  It’s the tale of a young artisan whose chance encounter with this dazzling spirit leads him to both happiness and despair all because he couldn’t quite keep his word to the woman he loved … not even when she kept her identity a secret for all those many years …
 
(NOTE: The following review will contain minor spoilers necessary solely for the discussion of plot and/or characters.  If you’re the type of reader who prefers a review entirely spoiler-free, then I’d encourage you to skip down to the last few paragraphs for the final assessment.  If, however, you’re accepting of a few modest hints at ‘things to come,’ then read on …)
​

From the film’s IMDB.com page citation:
“The lives of a master sculptor and his young apprentice are changed forever when they meet an evil witch during a snowstorm.”
 
For those unaware, a modest education is in order.
 
In Japanese folk lore, the Yuki-onna is a female spirit who answers to several other names, but all share the singular characteristic that she’s linked to snow.  Sometimes referred to as a ‘snow queen,’ her origins are a bit varied across several different regions, suggesting that she may’ve initially have been descended from the Moon, could be the spirit of an unfortunate soul who perished in the cold, or might possibly have been born from the snow itself.  There’s apparently a suggestion from a Japanese scholar that states if there’s enough of anything in life, then that thing is endowed with the gift of creating life to populate it.  As an example (per Wikipedia.org), a body of water that is deep and wide enough develops the ability to create fish to populate it.  Transitively, if a snowfall is plentiful enough, then it grows a snow woman to walk amongst its drifts.
 
However, the motivation of this spirit also varies from province to province.  Some tribes thought her appearance would serve as a warning to keep children indoors while still others align the sighting of such spectral entities as signaling a forthcoming bountiful harvest.  Though it isn’t uncommon for tales of her arrival to center around sorrow or woe, there are others that more strongly suggest her visits are meant more as cautionary reminders than anything else.  Because there are several significant variations, there really is no consensus around what expectation one might attach to encountering a Yuki-onna in the bitter and cold wild, but it should go without saying that the greeter will likely be changed … and not necessarily for the good.
 
In The Snow Woman, our Yuki (as played by Shiho Fujimura) is depicted as a powerful witch who comes alive during heavy snowstorms waiting for souls to take as a consequence for being out and unprotected in the frosty climate.  Yosaku (Akira Ishihama) – a young sculptor – and his mentor are travelling on foot when they are caught in a heavy downfall.  Seeking refuge in an empty shack, they light a fire and retire for the evening.  But it isn’t long before the snow woman – with her pale skin, golden eyes, and flowing black hair – happen upon them, and she quickly exacts her vengeance on the older man.  Bewitched by Yosaku’s good looks, she ultimately decides to spare him the same fate only if he agrees to live out the remainder of his days never divulging that he has met her eye-to-eye and lived to tell about it.  After all: a girl’s got a reputation to keep, am I right?
​

Once back in the village, Yosaku inherits the task left behind by his deceased mentor: he’s charged with carving a statue from a tree for one of the local temples.  In fact, this was the reason he and the old man were out in the forest in the first place – searching for the right tree – and Yosaku understands and enthusiastically agrees to take this challenge upon himself even though his skills are not quite what they should be.  Yet it isn’t long before Yuki – now in human form – descends upon the village with hopes to find love with the young man she’s entrusted with her secret.  Just like no one recognizes Clark Kent as Superman, Yosaku has no idea that Yuki is the famed snow woman; and he falls head-over-heels in love with her in the process.  Eventually, they wed and start a family … but as often happens in fairy tales of this type Yuki’s secret is never far away, and that secret inevitably will come back to haunt her and him in ways they couldn’t predict.
 
The best folk legends always seem to end on a sad note, and The Snow Woman is no different.  It’s almost as if happiness is more of a curse than is keeping a secret – Yosaku loses his mother but gains a bride; Yuki gains a husband, but her spectral beauty makes her a sought-after prize by other, more powerful men; passion blinds talent when it’s not properly tempered; etc. – and the cycle of ups-and-downs can’t quite stop long enough for true love to prevail.  I suspect that there’s never any doubt amongst the viewership that these two lovers are destined to be torn apart; and the resulting 80-minute running time is largely spent trying to guess when it will happen.  The real question becomes whether or not Yuki will allow her love to change her mind – to let Yosaku go on living if he breaks his promise – and that card is cleverly concealed until the big finish.
 
Director Tanaka has produced a masterful adaptation from start-to-finish.
 
Though a few sequences play out perhaps a bit longer than absolutely necessary, the film retains a leanness I’ve not encountered in other Japanese ghost stories.  The striking visuals are reserved for just the perfect moments; and, as such, the powerful cinematography helps move the story and characters forward instead of resorting to cinematic theatricality.  It’s poetry for the eyes, and I’ve found it very rare in supply these days.  In particular, Fujimura rules the day: her snow woman is a dastardly creation but not overblown with staginess.  She properly ‘vamps’ here and there in spectral form – fixes a potential male suitor or the town spiritual leader with a steely gaze – and the actress manages to elicit chills that are the foundation of the ghost she inhabits.  It’s an exceptional performance especially given the fact that she spends so much of the time as the coy, submissive housewife that the townsfolk would never possibly believe to be a deadly, vengeful spirit.
​

The Snow Woman (1968) was produced by Daiei Studios and Daiei.  DVD distribution (for this particular release) has been coordinated by the fine folks at Radiance Films.  As for the technical specifications?  While I’m no trained video expert, I found the provided sights-and-sounds to be incredible: the press materials from Radiance state that this is an all-new 4K restoration, and I’m honestly smitten with delight over this one.  It just oozes goodness at every spot.  Lastly, if you’re looking for special features?  I’m doing the copy-and-paste from the materials published on Blu-ray.com in order to get it right:
​

• New interview with filmmaker Masayuki Ochiai
• A visual essay on writer Lafcadio Hearn
• Trailer
• Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Filippo Di Battista

​
As I was provided with an industry copy, I always remind readers that I’m not typically provided the physical inserts, booklets, and artwork.  As such, I can’t speak about the efficacy of those items.
 
Highly Recommended.
 
Without being too hyperbolic, I fell in love with The Snow Woman (1968): this is, by far, one of the finest Japanese ghost stories I’ve ever seen.  Granted, I’m sure I haven’t seen as many of them as other critics have; but that doesn’t detract from the project’s greatness in any measurable way.  It’s a wonderful fable where girl-meets-boy, girl-curses-boy, boy-meets-girl, boy-weds-girl, and girl-turns-out-to-be-the-same-girl-who-cursed-him-in-the-beginning.  (Don’t worry: it’ll all make sense in the end.)  Thankfully, the script keeps everything simple – there’s just enough mythology to establish this world and its characters with not an ounce of bloat – and the performances and cinematography also stay on point, never rushing into overdrive or visually overstating the importance of a certain scene or sequence.  Just like a Grimm’s fairy tale, there’s a bittersweet ending … just the kind that might leave you wishing that there were more.
 
In the interest of fairness, I’m pleased to disclose that the fine folks at Radiance Films provided me with a complimentary Blu-ray of The Snow Woman (1968) – as part of their Daiei Gothic: Japanese Ghost Stories – by request for the expressed purpose of completing this review.  Their contribution to me in no way, shape, or form influenced my opinion of it.

-- EZ
​

Believe it or not: as a young’un, I missed out on the whole Jonny Quest experience.
 
You see, I’ve mentioned before many times that I grew up in what was commonly called “a one-horse town in the middle of nowhere.”  This was the late 1960’s and early 1970’s, so – television broadcasts being what they were – our humble home might’ve had six channels on a good day (with cooperative weather) all provided via antennae.  (Yes, eventually, we had cable, but that’s another story.)  While the other households may’ve had a few more spots on the dial, ours had to do with a bit less; and the vast majority of children’s programming wound up being heavily syndicated U.S. stuff interspersed with a good deal of foreign imports.  This didn’t bother me back then – as a child, I really had no barometer with which to measure the good from the bad – and it wasn’t until I arrived in college, starting making friends, began comparing our backgrounds, and whatnot that I realized there was this vast catalogue of TV franchises that didn’t require dubbing from Japanese to American English.
 
Furthermore, unlike today’s youth, we didn’t have home video and/or streaming back in the day, so it isn’t as if something like Jonny Quest – which premiered on televisions in the 1960’s and then ventured into syndication – was accessible to audiences of the time.  Either it was broadcast in your area at a reasonable time or it wasn’t, so there was no means with which to go and ‘catch up’ so you had a stronger foundation when chatting up your choices with your contemporaries.  While I do recall catching an episode or two as part of some bundled programming with a popular children’s show broadcast out of Chicago, that was my only time spent with Quest, Hadji, Race, Benton, and Bandit.  As such, that bug just never bit me, and I honestly never thought much about it.
 
Of course, some of that changed when the Cartoon Network added The Venture Bros. to its Adult Swim line-up.  Once that phenomenon became a somewhat household name, I did a bit of research and learned that a great many of its best comic bits were directly descended from the concepts and characters Quest originally delivered.  Indeed, there are some strong associations between the two properties, so strong that to speak about them separately might be challenging to fans of both; and I’m glad that I’ve had the chance to ‘bone up’ just a bit on my Quest exposure with Warner Archive’s latest release.
 
The Hanna-Barbera Double Feature Collection showcases two animated telefilms – Jonny’s Golden Quest (1993) and Jonny Quest Vs. The Cyber-Insects (1995) – that were completed before Hanna-Barbera was folded into Warner Bros. Animation.  Because of this fact alone, I’ve read online that some consider them the last true iteration of the franchise: it would surface again in 1996-1997 in serial format under the name of The Real Adventures Of Jonny Quest, though I’ve read on Wikipedia.org that the show’s reinvention with a slightly older cast of young heroes met with great controversy behind and during its production.  When it ended up largely as a ratings failure, Quest purists pointed back to these two movies as being the end to something special.
 
(NOTE: The following review will contain minor spoilers necessary solely for the discussion of plot and/or characters.  If you’re the type of reader who prefers a review entirely spoiler-free, then I’d encourage you to skip down to the last few paragraphs for the final assessment.  If, however, you’re accepting of a few modest hints at ‘things to come,’ then read on …)
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First up, Jonny’s Golden Quest …
 
From the film’s IMDB.com page citation:
“Investigating reports of synthetic gold lead Jonny Quest and the Quest Team to a showdown with Dr. Zin!”
 
Even though I’d grown up largely unaware of the wider Quest mythology, I had very little difficulty stepping into this first experience, a somewhat hodgepodge of several separate plotlines linked solely by the team’s search to locate the evil Dr. Zin and stop him from changing life as we know it with his cloning technology.  There’s plenty of action; and the various escapades really only service to give these adventurers a little something extra to do in order to fill the 90-minute running time that resembles the good old-fashioned good vs. evil construct of standard cartoon fare.  Also, it’s largely kid-centric – meaning that Jonny, Hadji, and Bandit get in on far more action than do the adults – so I can only imagine that young’uns probably had a good time with this when it originally aired on television.
 
Still – as I pointed out – not all of these plotlines flowed together perhaps as seamlessly as they could’ve.  These days, it hasn’t been all that uncommon for some superhero-style animated shows to plot out two- or three-episode arcs in order to weave a more complex story for their watchers who prefer a bit of longer-form narrative.  In a few spots, Golden Quest feels more like it was conceived as three separate thirty-minute episodes strung together; and the action matches the usual breaks wherein the broadcast would be paused for sponsors’ commercials.  Because it felt so obvious, I did have some trouble staying focused on the whole affair.  It’s entertaining, yes; but the brazen fade-to-blacks kept reminding me it was all ‘just a show’ and not quite a major motion picture.
 
However, the writers rather effectively gave Jonny a modest bit of character development: after his mother is stricken down before his eyes, he grows increasingly incensed with the idea of exacting his revenge over Dr. Zin for his part in her demise.  This is an idea that might be a bit dark for younger audiences, especially in today’s ‘cause du jour’ climate.  Although it’s handled with some restraint, the script does allow for the young man to eventually achieve peace with what happened: his struggles to control his emotions make for a few smaller moments along the way, even giving pause to the fact that he’s growing up anyway and becoming more aware of the fairer sex, a development highlighted by the addition of Jessie Kenyon to the Quest team.
 
Why, audiences were likely even treated to young Jonny getting his first kiss … albeit one on-the-cheek!
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Our second feature is Jonny Quest Vs. The Cyber-Insects …
 
From the film’s IMDB.com page citation:
“Jonny and the team reassemble with the addition of Race's daughter, to battle another creation of Dr. Zin's.”
 
Unlike Golden Quest, Cyber-Insects both feels and works far more like a traditional motion picture experience.
 
The installment is cleverly bookended with a segment exploring Jonny and Hadji’s ascendancy to mature young adults – think ‘teens’ – as they’ve both been tasked with stealing a sacred jewel in some South American ritual meant to show they’ve come of age.  Jonny’s recklessness curtails his gaining the approval of the Orinoco natives; so, alas, the boys are turned away with the instruction that our franchise’s lead must learn to both control his emotions and cooperate with others as a team, a motif that rears its head at several opportunities across this 90-minute adventure.
 
What endeared me more to this telefilm than the previous was the fact that it functioned as a true stand-alone throughout, delivering one major plotline around which all of the subplots remained in tandem.  When A clearly leads to B which clearly sets up C and so on and so forth, viewers are taken on a journey with the key players; and there’s greater connectivity between the watchers and the ones being watched.  Golden Quest – while entertaining – showed a bit of raggedness at its scenes, feeling all-too-often like something strung together not so much out of necessity as it was to fill time; that isn’t the case with Cyber-Insects.
 
Furthermore, this sequel dispenses with having to introduce new players – i.e. Jessie Kenyon becomes Jessie Banyon now that the truth of her heritage is out of the way – so the focus stays a bit more cleanly on plot and characters with the team committed to rescuing the captured Dr. Quest and the orbiting Quest Station from the hands of Dr. Zin.  This time out, the mastermind is exploiting genetic technology to engineer massive intelligent bugs – along with a side order of weather manipulation – in a bid to have all the nations of Earth bow down and accept him title as emperor to our planet.  Essentially, Jonny and the others engage in a race against time to both save his father, save the space station, and save the Big Blue Marble from the direst consequences.
 
And that impetuousness that Jonny felt in the opening?
 
Again, the scriptwriters introduce circumstances along the way that allow the young hero to face his shortcomings.  While it might grow a bit predictable in a few spots – once you know Jonny’s prone to run off half-cocked, it becomes easier to anticipate when he’s apt to do so – the undercurrent of the action still evolves to show he’s confronting that dark habit and making strides to improve.  Yes, he masters those temptations in the last reel; and he, Hadji, and Jessie all join hands in the second Orinoquian ceremony to show that we’re stronger together than we ever are apart.
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I’d also be remiss if I failed to point out that Cyber-Insects resonated much stronger as the kind of storytelling upon which the aforementioned The Venture Bros. capitalizes on in order to deliver its manic mirth.  It’s easy to see how this format has lasted so long in animation and survives to this day as an influence upon newcomers to the genre who want to tap the same sensibilities for a new generation of viewers.  In a few spots, Cyber-Insects even reminded me of the 1980’s animated incarnation of Flash Gordon (from Filmation), one of the favorites I enjoyed in my teenage years.  It’s all meant to be good clean fun – with heroes worth cheering and villains worth despising – and you just don’t get that all that much these days.
 
Jonny’s Golden Quest (1933) was produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions, USA Network, and Turner Program Services (TPS); while Jonny Quest Vs. The Cyber-Insects (1995) was produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions and TNT.  DVD distribution (for this particular release) was coordinated by the fine folks at Warner Archive.  As for the technical specifications?  While I’m no trained video expert, I found the sights-and-sounds of both productions to be exceptional from start-to-finish: the one warning I’d caution is that there are a few sequences in Cyber-Insects wherein the team is in extreme danger and the animation gets a bit too herky-jerky before settling down.  It’s a bit overdone, but it doesn’t last too long, thankfully.  Lastly, if you’re looking for special features?  Alas, the disc has nothing.
 
Recommended.
 
Hanna-Barbera animation fans have a bit to get excited about with the home video release of Jonny’s Golden Quest (1993) and Jonny Quest Vs. The Cyber-Insects (1995); and I suspect what legion of fans surrounding the Quest dynasty itself might be tickled pink as well.  Though I can speak to how thrilled hardcore enthusiasts might be with this particular iteration of the intellectual property, both telefilms feature respectable animation (maybe a cut above some Saturday morning television fare), plenty of action, and a thrilling story with which to get lost in the mayhem.  Personally, I enjoyed the Cyber-Insects flick more – Golden Quest really took the long way to get to a fairly elementary story – as it feels a bit more like the great toons of the late 1970’s and early 1980’s that captivated me as a viewer.

Gentle reminder: keep in mind, folks, that I'm coming at the Quest phenomenon almost entirely as a newbie.  I can't evaluate how well these telefilms relate to the vastness of what came before.  With fresh eyes and an open mind, I had fun with these, and I hope many would agree.
 
In the interests of fairness, I’m pleased to disclose that the fine folks at Warner Archive provided me with a complimentary Blu-ray of Jonny’s Golden Quest (1993) and Jonny Quest Vs. The Cyber-Insects (1995) – as part of their Hanna-Barbera Double Feature Collection – by request for the expressed purpose of completing this review.  Their contribution to me in no way, shape, or form influenced my opinion of it.

-- EZ
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