Fringe: The Complete First Season (Blu-Ray)
WARNER
SHOW B+
SPECIAL FEATURES B
DVD GEEK FACTOR 6.5
(OUT OF 10)
This sci-fi series from Lost creator J.J. Abrams gets off to
a surprisingly gory start with its pilot, in which a plane full of
passengers falls victim to some sort of toxic attack. It’s surprising,
because this is network-TV stuff (Fox, specifically), and people’s
faces melt off in a rather graphic fashion. It’s definitely R-rated
material.
The pilot sets up a sort of X-Files scenario, establishing an
investigative team consisting of FBI Agent Olivia Dunham (Anna Torv, an
impressive actress), a crazy scientist named Walter Bishop (a funny and
unnerving John Noble) and his mysterious son, Peter (a dramatically
strong Joshua Jackson). The team investigates various bizarre
phenomena, aka “The Pattern,” and it leads to weekly, scary stories
that should appeal to fans of The X-Files and The Twilight
Zone.
The show is currently in its second season, airing Thursdays on Fox.
It’s worth checking out, and it’s pretty addictive.
SPECIAL FEATURES: Some writer-producer commentaries, plenty
of featurettes, a gag reel, deleted scenes and more.
Manson
A&E
SHOW B-
SPECIAL FEATURES NONE
DVD GEEK FACTOR 5
(OUT OF 10)
Producers of this dramatic re-enactment of the Manson Family murder
spree have Linda Kasabian, a member of the Manson cult, telling her
story as the events are re-created. Some of the acting is a little
hokey, but the production values of the re-enactments are passable, and
Kasabian’s testimony is interesting stuff. The show, which aired on the
History Channel, does include some actual crime-scene photos, so
parental discretion is advised.
Forty years after the events, the details are still unbelievably
terrifying. I was born the year before this happened, and I can tell
you that people were always talking about Manson and Helter Skelter in
the ’70s. Adam Wilson, who plays Charles Manson in the re-enactment,
does a decent enough job. He’s better than Jeremy Davies, who was
terrible playing Manson in the Helter Skelter remake in
2004.
Other interviews woven into the show include Manson family member
Catherine Share, lead prosecutor Vincent Bugliosi and Debra Tate,
sister of Manson family victim Sharon Tate.
SPECIAL FEATURES: Nuthin’!
Drag Me to Hell (Blu-Ray)
UNIVERSAL
MOVIE B
SPECIAL FEATURES C
DVD GEEK FACTOR 6
(OUT OF 10)
Director Sam Raimi took a break from the Spider-Man universe and
returned to what film geeks know him best for with this fast paced,
intermittently scary, often funny horror film. Alison Lohman plays
Christine Brown, a loan officer who refuses to give an extension to an
old gypsy woman—and the old woman doesn’t appreciate it.
Raimi does demons well, and the movie gives him plenty of reasons to
depict screechy noises, gross fluids and freak-out moments. Lohman is a
great sport, getting sprayed with all forms of vile liquids and
enduring all sorts of physical situations. Justin Long does good work
as Christine’s long-suffering boyfriend; the final shot involving his
face is a real winner.
Kudos to Lorna Raver, who plays the old gypsy woman Sylvia Ganush;
she’s willing to do positively disgusting things for the sake of good
horror. Her discolored eye and her rotten, slimy false teeth make her a
memorable movie monster.
While this film got some good reviews, it didn’t exactly set the box
office on fire, and that might not bode well for future Raimi horror
ventures. He’s been hinting at an Evil Dead IV forever now, and
this film’s lack of success probably didn’t push him in the direction
of continuing with the adventures of Ash.
SPECIAL FEATURES: The disc contains both the theatrical
version and an unrated version. The unrated version gets away with more
blood, but it isn’t radically different from what we saw on the big
screen. You also get a digital copy of the movie and production diaries
that go behind the scenes of such effects as Christine’s massively
bloody nose. The diaries are cool, but that’s the only extra—and
it’s not enough.
Child’s Play (Blu-Ray)
MGM
MOVIE B-
SPECIAL FEATURES B
DVD GEEK FACTOR 6.25
(OUT OF 10)
The demonic doll goes high-definition just in time for Halloween,
and the little bastard looks good. While the sequels are tedious, the
original remains a fun watch. Brad Dourif is the perfect choice to play
Charles Lee Ray, the killer whose spirit transfers into a goofy-looking
doll. Once that transference takes place, the doll goes on a killing
spree.
It’s hard to believe this movie is more than 20 years old. It’s also
hard to believe that actress Catherine Hicks actually found
professional work. God, she’s terrible.
SPECIAL FEATURES: The disc comes loaded with various
commentaries (including scene-specific commentary from Chucky himself)
and many behind-the-scenes featurettes. The package comes with both a
Blu-Ray and a standard DVD.
This article appears in Oct 8-14, 2009.