Scream Factory Blu-ray Discussion Thread

[dissention]

Originally Posted by Lucy Ashton

The homosexual insinuations shouldn't be problematic in and of themselves. It's 2014, after all. Nor should the sweaty male torsos. At least they're adult male torsos. But yes, it is difficult to accept any kind of sexualised content from the mind of someone convicted of sexual predation, I'll give you that.

The homosexual insinuations aren't problematic in and of themselves, they're problematic coming from a convicted child molester who has made public statements about his "persecution" in prison for being a child rapist & made an entire film (Powder) about the plight of an outcast from society. Except Powder had magic powers.

They almost become the most bizarre non-sequiturs ever committed to a horror film; classmate gets eaten, the boys accuse each other of homosexuality. Tires get blown out from weapons made of human bones, the boys accuse each other of homosexuality. Are we seeing the self-loathing side of Salva peeking out? They make as much sense as scenes of the boys urinating together, sunbathing together, shirtless male corpses being lingered on by the camera, etc. Scenes that only further Salva's own fetishistic means, just as the plot of a monster chasing after these boys to eat them feeds into his own psychological disturbances.

That's where the ick factor comes in.

[fuzzymctiger]

I have a VHS of Clownhouse that i picked up at the market, and i watched it the other night, and from a horror side of things, i thought the latter half was fantastic.

The first half? Like a hateful episode of Goosebumps with homoerotic overtones.

I've always been one for seperating art from artist but in the case of Clownhouse i dont think I'd be able to watch the first half again, but the second half i think so.

As for Salva, I remember on a camp in Grade 7 we were all made to watch his gymnast film, went home and looked up about it to find out it was made by a kiddy fiddler!!!

[SendMoreParamedics]

My fault for derailing this thread. It wasn't my intention.

I will buy The Final Terror sight unseen, which I rarely do for overpriced movies. Darryl Hannah in the '80s is worth watching. She had great screen presence.

Without Warning will make a nice double feature with it.

Too bad Scream Factory can't get the rights to Phantasm. The movie has such a surreal and dream-like atmosphere. It is a great example of why horror movies today have no style.

[demonknight]

Originally Posted by dissention

The homosexual insinuations aren't problematic in and of themselves, they're problematic coming from a convicted child molester who has made public statements about his "persecution" in prison for being a child rapist & made an entire film (Powder) about the plight of an outcast from society. Except Powder had magic powers.

They almost become the most bizarre non-sequiturs ever committed to a horror film; classmate gets eaten, the boys accuse each other of homosexuality. Tires get blown out from weapons made of human bones, the boys accuse each other of homosexuality. Are we seeing the self-loathing side of Salva peeking out? They make as much sense as scenes of the boys urinating together, sunbathing together, shirtless male corpses being lingered on by the camera, etc. Scenes that only further Salva's own fetishistic means, just as the plot of a monster chasing after these boys to eat them feeds into his own psychological disturbances.

That's where the ick factor comes in.

Not to mention the film he made with massive undertones about the prison system itself.... I refer to Nature of the Beast.

In fact, I heard a stand up comic on a podcast condemn Salva, but first, he told that he felt the title Clownhouse felt kind of creepy and molest-y. He went on to say something tasteless like "Hey, kids. Come on down to Uncle Touchy's Clownhouse."

[redrunner97]

I don't have a problem watching Polanski films. They are art, and there were more people than he that worked on them and, in particular, Rosemary's Baby, think of all the people that poured their heart and soul into the finished product. If some random boom guy happened to later do what Polanski did, who would judge the film? You think Mia Farrow would want you to not see her performance because of some creep? Seperate him from that film because his actions did not affect that movie.

Regarding Clownhouse, I don't think it should ever be released simply because everything that happened was during the production and directly relates to the film and the kid on-screen. Its awful and disgusting. Should his other films be looked at any differently? No. For the same reason as Polanski's films. However, I don't think you should be BFF's with the dude.

We can't pretend like appaling people can not create entertaining and enjoyable art. Clownhouse is not that, it should be destroyed. Never released. Imagine the pain that would cause and re-traumatization of their family. But I love the Jeepers Creepers films, and Polanski's Rosemary's Baby is a masterpiece. (At least see that DemonKnight, if not maybe try the NBC reboot )

That's my two cents. Now, back to regularly scheduled programing.

[demonknight]

Originally Posted by redrunner97

I don't have a problem watching Polanski films. They are art, and there were more people than he that worked on them and, in particular, Rosemary's Baby, think of all the people that poured their heart and soul into the finished product. If some random boom guy happened to later do what Polanski did, who would judge the film? You think Mia Farrow would want you to not see her performance because of some creep? Seperate him from that film because his actions did not affect that movie.

Regarding Clownhouse, I don't think it should ever be released simply because everything that happened was during the production and directly relates to the film and the kid on-screen. Its awful and disgusting. Should his other films be looked at any differently? No. For the same reason as Polanski's films. However, I don't think you should be BFF's with the dude.

We can't pretend like appaling people can not create entertaining and enjoyable art. Clownhouse is not that, it should be destroyed. Never released. Imagine the pain that would cause and re-traumatization of their family. But I love the Jeepers Creepers films, and Polanski's Rosemary's Baby is a masterpiece. (At least see that DemonKnight, if not maybe try the NBC reboot )

That's my two cents. Now, back to regularly scheduled programing.

Like I said, my family will eventually force me to watch the original and Chinatown.

[cakefactory]

One problem with boycotting movies because the director is evil is that it punishes the other hundred plus people that made the movie for the crimes of the one. I guess I can understand it in the case of stuff made after the guy was convicted of the crime, since then you could make the argument that all the people working with him were aware that their director was a scumlord and thus are also morally reprehensible, but yeah. Does Roman Polanski even collect royalties on people watching/buying his stuff in the US since he's in exile or whatever, or does he just get the initial director's salary? I assume Salva still does since he "did his time" (not enough time) and now is out and about in the US still.

[GuruAskew]

Originally Posted by zbinks

That's because it really isn't a Lionsgate title at all. STK, LLC simply licensed the theatrical distribution to Lionsgate and the home video distribution to Sony.

[Show spoiler]

It's not that simple. Lion Gate had no video distribution entity at the time Dogma was released on video and Universal was their go-to company. They released titles like American Psycho and Gods and Monsters on video and DVD but those licenses lapsed and those titles have since reverted back to Lionsgate.

Lions Gate went to Universal to distribute Dogma on video too and they passed due to the film's controversial nature. Sony wasn't afraid to release it. That is the only difference between Dogma and other Lions Gate titles from before they merged with Trimark and actually had the infrastructure to release their own films on video.

If you look through my posts you'll see that I recently guessed that the film actually reverted to the Weinsteins, but at this point I'm convinced that the film is still a Lionsgate title. Sony stripped almost all references to Lions Gate from the film when they initially released it on DVD but the Blu-ray actually prominently features the Lionsgate logo which doesn't really jibe with the theory that they've been completely hands-off since the theatrical release, as does the fact that Lions Gate was still the company taking the film to companies like Universal and Sony in the first place.

[Undeadcow]

Blair Witch 2: Book of Shadows is in desperate need of a blu-ray release; it's too often overlooked. Granted nowhere at stellar as the first, but BoS is a crazy film that is too often overlooked. I think Lions Gate is sitting on it though.

[Undeadcow]

DVD Talk on Dead Shadows: http://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/63242/dead-shadows/

[redrunner97]

I have a theory that Lionsgate is slowly losing their rights to the Artisan library.

Prom Night III / IV are no longer with Lionsgate, they are with SimCom successors eOne/Echo Bridge.
Pumpkinhead 2 is now Scream via either MGM or an independent owner / the producers.

And who knows what other Artisan films have reverted back to whomever was contractually supposed to get them all these years later.

[Mateo Sanboval]

Originally Posted by redrunner97

I have a theory that Lionsgate is slowly losing their rights to the Artisan library.

Prom Night III / IV are no longer with Lionsgate, they are with SimCom successors eOne/Echo Bridge.
Pumpkinhead 2 is now Scream via either MGM or an independent owner / the producers.

And who knows what other Artisan films have reverted back to whomever was contractually supposed to get them all these years later.

Fingers crossed.

[demonknight]

Originally Posted by redrunner97

I have a theory that Lionsgate is slowly losing their rights to the Artisan library.

Prom Night III / IV are no longer with Lionsgate, they are with SimCom successors eOne/Echo Bridge.
Pumpkinhead 2 is now Scream via either MGM or an independent owner / the producers.

And who knows what other Artisan films have reverted back to whomever was contractually supposed to get them all these years later.

Just imagine if they lost Reservoir Dogs. They would die when it reverts back to... Lionsgate. Damn.

[SendMoreParamedics]

Originally Posted by Undeadcow

Blair Witch 2: Book of Shadows is in desperate need of a blu-ray release; it's too often overlooked. Granted nowhere at stellar as the first, but BoS is a crazy film that is too often overlooked. I think Lions Gate is sitting on it though.

I'm so glad you brought this up. Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2 is one of my favorite guilty pleasures. I hate the first one, but part 2 is amazing. Most people didn't give it a chance when it was released just because it is a sequel that dared to do something different.

The cinematography, the cast, and especially the music by Carter Burwell, is great.

I would buy it on Blu if it was released.

I would also like to see the original cut before the studio forced them to do reshoots. I wonder what it would be like.

[demonknight]

Originally Posted by SendMoreParamedics

I'm so glad you brought this up. Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2 is one of my favorite guilty pleasures. I hate the first one, but part 2 is amazing. Most people didn't give it a chance when it was released just because it is a sequel that dared to do something different.

The cinematography, the cast, and especially the music by Carter Burwell, is great.

I would buy it on Blu if it was released.

I would also like to see the original cut before the studio forced them to do reshoots. I wonder what it would be like.

I got the first one on DVD for my birthday last September and still have to watch it. Same for Green Mile, Shawshank Redemption, Cuckoo's Nest, and a few others.

Did you solve the secret of Esrever?

[SendMoreParamedics]

Originally Posted by demonknight

I got the first one on DVD for my birthday last September and still have to watch it. Same for Green Mile, Shawshank Redemption, Cuckoo's Nest, and a few others.

Did you solve the secret of Esrever?

I got the box set of the two movies and three PC games that came out back in 2001, I think. The first PC game, Blair Witch: Volume I - Rustin Parr, was really pretty cool, creepy, and atmospheric. It had a great noir style and excellent soundtrack (which I acquired a few years ago). The other two games didn't seem very good, I never finished playing them.

As for Esrever, I never bothered to figure it out. I remember there was a website about it back when the movie was released. I only learned what Esrever was last year, I think.

[Pete Rock]

Originally Posted by redrunner97

I have a theory that Lionsgate is slowly losing their rights to the Artisan library.

Prom Night III / IV are no longer with Lionsgate, they are with SimCom successors eOne/Echo Bridge.
Pumpkinhead 2 is now Scream via either MGM or an independent owner / the producers.

And who knows what other Artisan films have reverted back to whomever was contractually supposed to get them all these years later.

Wouldn't that possibly put Waxwork, Watchers, and Bride of Re-Animator up for grabs? Wasn't Fright Night Part II an Artisan release that some have speculated might be with Lionsgate as well? This could get very interesting if your theory is indeed true.

[theprestige85]

Demonknight I bet you are absolutely thrilled about Pumpkinbrain coming to blu ray, init?

[Mr.Dig]

Originally Posted by theprestige85

Demonknight I bet you are absolutely thrilled about Pumpkinbrain coming to blu ray, init?

Who cares!? Im thrilled and many other members on this forum! And the name of the movie is Pumpkinhead.

[loreng3]

Originally Posted by BarnDoor

The remaining MGM titles that Scream might release - how many do we think have Collector's Edition potential, as a matter of interest?

I can't see the likes of Raw Meat, Burnt Offerings, From a Whisper to a Scream, Phantom of the Opera, Edge of Sanity, The Believers, The Curse, Lady in White, Scarecrows, Clownhouse (a Scream release of this at all is unlikely), The Ambulance and The First Power getting the CE treatment. Ditto stuff previously unreleased on DVD (Death Weekend, Mom, The Borrower, Highway to Hell, etc).

Annnnnnnd those are ALL the MGM titles I would buy in a heartbeat. The more mainstream films are not interesting to me at all.