Destroy All Monsters (1968)

Movie: 5/5
Video: 3.5/5
Audio: 3.5/5
Extras: 3/5
Overall: 3.5/5

Godzilla's Second Blu-ray Outing in the U.S.

I was full of dread once Media Blasters announced that they had gotten the rights to two Godzilla films; the other being Godzilla Vs Megalon, which still hasn't been released since it's original November release date. Media Blasters is a horrible studio who does nothing but delay titles on Blu-ray much to the frustration of fans of the films that they have. Luckily, the release of Destroy All Monsters was only delayed by two weeks, whereas we waited over a year for Ichi the Killer and about a year for Machine Girl, just to give some examples. I paid about $18 for this release, I wouldn't pay more for it if you can it for that. There is problems with this release in terms of quality control.

In Godzilla's ninth outing; the film starts off in the year 1999 when all of the monsters are contained on Ogasawara Island, aka Monster Island or in this film Monster Land. A group of astronauts are called back to Earth after Monster Land is ravaged and the monsters have been unleashed. They learn that a race of aliens are bent on dominating the Earth and are using the monsters a pawns in their plan. The astronauts, as well as the higher ups in Japan, are scrambling to find ways to bring down the aliens and stop the monsters from destroying the planet.

Godzilla was my inspiration for wanting to be a filmmaker. I had first seen Destroy All Monsters when it was released by ADV video; it was amazing to actually see a Godzilla film in it's original aspect ratio at the time in 1999. I really enjoy how Toho seemed to go all out with the usage of all the monsters; sure this film focuses a lot on the Human interaction, but it is great to see Godzilla on the screen when he appears. I give the film a 5/5.

The video is problematic and this is due to Toho's HD remaster of the film that occurred in 2008. Some shots appear nice and crisp while other shots will be dull or covered in dirt and scratches. I found this to be quite frustrating at times. If Toho would have done better job at their remastering, I think this could have been a phenomenal release. Colors do pop out with great definition, like with how green the grass and trees look while Anguirus is on Monster Land in the opening of the film for example. Video scores a 3.5/5.

Now, I do like that Media Blasters brought in the AIP dub of the film since I've never heard it before. However, I wonder where they sourced it from. At times is sounds like it's rolling around and the pitch seems to drop. It especially was bothersome when all of the monsters destroy Tokyo as you hear the pitch dropping and rising. Also on the disc is the Toho international dub which sounds just the same as it did on the ADV Video release of the film. And then we have the Japanese audio presented in DTS-HD 5.1 and a Dolby Digital 2.0 track. The Japanese track sounds great, but the problems with AIP dub of the film brings it down and I give the audio a 3.5/5.

While there is a good amount of bonus material, Media Blasters could have encoded it much better and needed to do some serious quality control. We have a series of Destroy All Monsters trailers listed as "Promo Reel". The first trailer is an English trailer that's 4:3 widescreen and most likely sourced from the PAL format given the black and white lines at the top of the video. The audio sounds weak and is very low and then as it ends, you get the Japanese trailer which is booming in comparison. After the Japanese trailer, we have a French trailer, which again is very weak sounding and low. Also, it's another PAL formatted video converted over to NTSC and it's obviously telecined from a print that was stretched to 1.33:1 from 2.35:1 as we see the lines just right above the image. Then after the French trailer, we have several English language radio spots for the film.

After that, we have an 8mm sourced reel that could be found in the 70's whenever people owned 8mm and Super 8mm projectors and cameras. It's 4:3 full screen, cropped from it's original aspect ratio. It's very worn and faded with brownish/redish tone to the image. Again, could Media Blasters not worry themselves about trying to fix the audio, it's very low. After that we have some photo galleries and storyboards. There's a commentary track by two Godzilla experts as well some trailers for coming attractions on the main menu screen. These two trailers are for Godzilla Vs Megalon and Riki-Oh: The Story of Ricky. Again, Riki-Oh's trailer is 4:3 widescreen. Could they not be convinced to shave off the black bars on the top and bottom to have it fit properly? I mean, this is a Blu-ray and we all have 16:9 set ups here. Bonus materials score a 3/5.

Media Blasters could have done a better on this Blu-ray and it feels rushed and that they did the authoring at the last minute since this title was delayed by two weeks. If you announce a title in April and then waste all that time in between just screwing around, it's gonna show and it does here. How hard would it be to actually take the time to fix these issues with the audio to make it just right? Overall, I give this release a 3.5/5. If you're a hardcore Godzilla fan like myself, you'll enjoy it but wish for more.

Hellraiser: Bloodline (1996) / Hellraiser: Inferno (2000) / Hellraiser: Hellseeker (2002) / Hellraiser: Hellworld (2005)

Movie: 3/5
Video: 2.5/5
Audio: 2.5/5
Extras: 0/5
Overall: 2/5

One, Two, Skip a Few; Screw the Seventh Film in the Series!

I've never really subjected myself to the straight to video Hellraiser films because it seemed like there was always a new one coming out in the early 2000's. Sure, Bloodline was a theatrical film and the final nail in the theatrical coffin for Pinhead and the Cenobites. Upon seeing this release by Echo Bridge hitting the stores, I searched out and found this release for $10 and figured; "Eh, why not?"

This Blu-ray release contains the fourth, fifth, sixth, and eighth film in the Hellraiser series. One question that has been on my mind is why they didn't either include the third or seventh film in the Hellraiser series since Echo Bridge has the rights to these films from the Filmyard/Miramax library. Again, another thing that puzzles me is that why didn't Lionsgate take interest in getting the rights to Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth? Surely, if Echo Bridge was going to put together an four-in-one Blu-ray, surely they would take full advantage and the interest of Pinhead fans and putting Hell On Earth on the disc to make this disc really worth the $10. And it also makes no sense that they skipped the seventh film, Hellraiser: Deader, for the eighth entry; Hellraiser: Hellworld.

Hellraiser: Bloodline is an origin story dealing with the creation of Lament Configuration and the span of three generations of the family who created the puzzle. The first generation spans around the time frame of 1600 to 1800's. And we essentially see who Pinhead was and another one of his Cenobites origins. The second generation spans in modern time with descent of the Lament Configuration's creator. We see some neat Cenobites come into play which will finally be in the final act which is the future and Pinhead in space.

Ultimately, the film is probably my least favorite in this collection. Always putting a super-natural/villain into space has always been a downfall; like "Jason X". With the same actor portraying his generations takes it a bit on the cheesy side of the film. If we were going to have an actor to do this portrayal, they should have gotten a much better actor for the role. Film scores a 2.5/5.

Bloodline is presented in an okay 1080p transfer. I want to say that this probably another compressed down transfer that's different from the Single and Double feature release containing this film. There's print damage that pops up here and there and the video feels pretty weak. Considering that this film was shot on film, we couldn't possibly get a remaster with this? Video scores a 2.5/5. The audio presentation on this disc is most likely the same on others since they didn't change the audio on From Dusk Till Dawn's different releases. The audio is fair and I feel it deserves a 3/5.

Hellraiser: Inferno. To sum this film, if this weren't a Hellraiser film, it would be a lot better. I'm sure most fans of Pinhead know that the lead Cenobite is barely in this film. A child has gone missing and a crooked detective puts himself on the case only to get more than he bargained for as a person known as "The Engineer" is the one who has taken the child.

I give this film a 3/5 and if this wasn't a Hellraiser film, I'd give it a higher recommendation. In a Hellraiser film, we want Pinhead, Pinhead, and more Pinhead. With Pinhead barely in the film, it feels like you're being ripped off.

Presented in a rough and inconsistent 1080i transfer and again, probably an HDTV master for the film, which is what all these Echo Bridge releases seem like. Upon comparing screenshots of the Multi-Feature and the Double Feature, this version is a compressed down version of that transfer. Due to the compression, I have to give this a dismal 1.5/5. And again, I am sure the audio presentation is the same from the Double Feature. I give the audio a 2.5/5.

Hellraiser: Hellseeker. The sixth entry of the series stars Ashley Laurence from the original Hellraiser trilogy. In this entry, her husband (Dean Winters, of the "All State" Commercials) is believes that his wife didn't drown in the car crash they were in. When he discovers the Lament Configuration, his world turns upside down as he reaches his way closer to the truth.

I feel this one deserves a 3/5. At times it feels slow, but at the same time, I also feel that this is a somewhat recycled version of Hellraiser: Inferno. It seems to have that same theme going for it with trying to uncover the truth. But Pinhead is in it a lot more than he was in the fifth entry, but at the same time, I wish he was in it more than he was.

Presented in it's OAR of 1.85:1, Hellraiser: Hellseeker debuts with a somewhat all right transfer. It doesn't seem as bad as Inferno, but I think it's probably a tad better than the Hellworld transfer. I feel that Hellseeker deserves a 3/5. Audio again, decent, 2.5/5.

Hellraiser: Hellworld, the final chapter until Harvey Weinstein produced the newest latest Hellraiser that was is Doug Bradley-less. Bradley's final outing as Pinhead is somewhat a satisfying farewell to the actor's departing of the series. In this entry, Hellraiser goes online with a World of Warcraft-esque game where gamers take their love a little far when a player is found dead. Upon going to the funeral, the player's friends are invited to a "Hellworld Party" where players can meet and have their own "Pleasures". One by one, each of them meet their end by Pinhead and his Cenobites.

Sure, what I just wrote above sounds interesting, but once we hit the twist at the end; the film crashes and burns. I came real close to just shutting the film off and just writing it off and leaving the last fifteen minutes alone. However, those final moments, did bring it back up for me and I was pleasantly surprised how they could rebound from that horrible plot twist. Movie scores a 3/5.

This 1080p transfer is inconsistent like the Hellraiser: Inferno transfer and I am sure this is more or less something that the DP had in mind with shooting the film. Shots switch back and forth from bright to freakin' dark. And this is a strong contrast between the shots. Also, the soft bright shots also become to overwhelming. Video scores a 2/5. And again, the audio is average, 2.5/5.

Movies: 2.5 + 3 + 3 + 3 = 2.875 = 3/5.
Video: 2.5 + 1.5 + 3 + 2 = 2.25 = 2.5/5.
Audio: 3 + 2.5 + 2.5 + 2.5 = 2.625 = 2.5/5
Extra: 0/5
Overall: 3 + 2.5 + 2.5 = 8/4 = 2/5

With this release scoring a 2/5, for the price, I can recommend it. The debut of Hellseeker is pretty good; in comparison to the release of Full Tilt Boogie in that Multi-Feature. For $10, pick it up. It probably won't be worth it to track down the other releases with these titles in it.

From Dusk Till Dawn (1996) / From Dusk Till Dawn 2: Texas Blood Money (1999) / From Dusk Till Dawn 3: The Hangman's Daughter (2000) / Full Tilt Boogie (1997)

Movie: 4/5
Video: 2.5/5
Audio: 3.5/5
Extras: 0/5
Overall: 2.5/5

From Dusk Till Dawn - Round 3.

Upon scanning the files on my laptop, the encodes on From Dusk Till Dawn 1 & 2 are the same encodes as the double feature release. I will be skipping straight to The Hangman's Daughter and Full Tilt Boogie. Scores are still of all four films together. To see my opinions on the double feature, please read my review over there.

From Dusk Till Dawn 3: The Hangman's Daughter; the third and supposed last entry in the series until these past few months when Harvey Weinstein stated that he wanted to work with Miramax's new owners and make sequels to past projects he's produced at Miramax when it was once owned by Disney. I think this is an open and closed book with these three films and the documentary. As a step up from the second film, I still felt somewhat disappointed by the film.

The film is based around the character Esmeralda who is played by Ara Celi in this film since it's obvious that they couldn't get Selma Hayek back for the role. We learn that she was once a girl who was "The Hangman's Daughter". This is a very basic cash in sequel to milk the series dry. Sure, we got Michael Parks and Danny Trejo back, but the material feels very recycled. The acting is average to poor in a lot of scenes; the actor who plays Johnny Madrid could have done better. Orlando Jones' performance was campy and he's one of my favorite comedic actors, so it's always great to see him whenever he does a movie. Movie barely scores a 3 out of 5 in my book.

One big problem with this encode is that Echo Bridge cut the film off during the end credits which effectively removes a scene past the credits with Michael Parks sitting in a bar. It's such a shame that they would mess that up. I feel that this also effects my opinion towards this disc. The movie is presented in 1080p and it's OAR, but it's still a mess. A proper restoration should have been done on the film as some shots have a complete difference in color tone. A lot of the film has a brownish tone to the film, but even some shots of the sky in the opening minutes of the film has this purplish hue in the blue which shows that this film's master print has not been handled properly.

Another big problem I have with this film's presentation is the computerized effects in which they were rendered and it hurts the visual presentation for the film. In a shot on the professional review for the individual release, there's a shot of Temuera Morrison fighting a snake and the picture has the lowest resolution I believe I have ever seen; even possibly lower than VCD resolution. Maybe it's because this was a straight to video flick and they possibly never thought about high definition at the time this film was released in the year 2000. These low resolution shots mainly happen towards the end half hour of the film. With these problems aside, the transfer feels soft and just a real average transfer; but with these problems factored in, video scores a 2/5.

The audio presentation on the disc is DTS-HD MA 5.1, even though it seems like Echo Bridge is stepping it up with audio the audio on their releases, this track could have been better. The first film's audio presentation was pretty decent whereas with this, we have the audio from a straight to video flick where I don't think the care was really given to it in the first place. Audio scores an average 2.5/5.

And for the final film in this set, we have "Full Tilt Boogie". A documentary catching behind the scenes of Robert Rodriguez's film, "From Dusk Till Dawn". And that's the gist of it. We see that they had problems during production of the film and that we see how some of the people work behind the cameras. The documentary is pretty solid in my opinion, but there's some sluggishness to it in a spot or two, mainly when we have some women talking about on set crushes and stuff like that. I could care less about it. Movie scores a 4.5/5.

The video presentation is surprising to say the least. It looks as if this was remastered in the process over the years as we have a very nice image from the 16mm and VHS sourced material. Obviously the film footage of "From Dusk Till Dawn" is the newly remastered footage thrown in. One thing that I question is the OAR. I think it would be safe to assume that this was presented open matted on VHS and DVD throughout the years by Disney as this new HD master gives a cropped 16:9 version of the shot footage. Usually when the OAR is really effected, I would really lower my score; but I think this is the best the documentary has ever looked, 3.5/5.

The audio presentation is a DTS-HD MA 2.0 track. Considering this a documentary, I think the audio works well for this. I really don't have any real complaints towards it. I know I might be giving it an advantage by giving it 5/5.

Let's total up:
Movies: 5 + 2.5 + 3 + 4.5 = 15/4 = 3.75 = 4/5
Video: 2.5 + 1.5 + 2 + 3.5 = 9.5/4 = 2.375 = 2.5/5
Audio: 3.5 + 2.5 + 2.5 + 5 = 13.5/4 = 3.375 = 3.5/5
Extas: 0x4 = 0/5
Over all: 4 + 2.5 + 3.5 = 10/4 = 2.5/5

This disc is average with it's 2.5/5 rating. Considering that you can pick this up currently at $8 to $10, I can say that I can recommend it to you even though "From Dusk Till Dawn" is the same compressed encode from the double feature. Also, this is the only Blu-ray release Echo Bridge has given us for "Full Tilt Boogie". A 2.5/5 doesn't seem that bad really. Maybe the score could have been higher if it would have been just the first film and the documentary.

Dracula 2000 (2000) / Dracula II: Ascension (2003) / Dracula III: Legacy (2005) / They (2002)

Movie: 2.5/5
Video: 3/5
Audio: 2.5/5
Extras: 0/5
Overall: 2/5

If Interested in Dracula 2000, Seek Out the Canadian Release.

First Film: Dracula 2000, Wes Craven's produced Dracula flick taking place in London to New Orleans. Van Helsing is protecting Dracula's tomb in which gets stolen and soon the king of the undead will rise. Dracula is awaken and hungry and feeds off the grave robbers turning them into vampires. As Dracula makes his way to the U.S, he starts feeding off on beautiful women and searching for a woman who unknowingly is related to Dracula.

The movie scores a four out of five. I found the film to enjoyable considering how old the film is. The video presentation by Echo Bridge will come off as either average or poor to A/V enthusiasts. The film is in 1080i and is presented in 1.78:1 from it's 2.35:1 presentation. I was so disappointed to see the image fill the screen after the opening credits which were presented in 2.35:1. Video scores a 2.5/5. Audio is just average, audio scores a 2.5/5.

Second Film: Dracula II: Ascension, in a continuation of Dracula 2000, a charred corpse appears in a morgue which appears to be a vampire. At the same this discovery is made, a mean vampire slayin' priest shows up to try to bless the corpse. The med students who take the corpse bathe it in blood and Dracula is born again but not looking anything like Gerard Butler from the first film. They contain Dracula in a burned out factory where they try to uncover the secret of his eternal life.

Movie scores a three out of five. It's all right but it seems to pale in comparison of Dracula 2000. Jason Scott Lee is pretty awesome as the vampire slayin' priest. The video scores a 3/5 and Echo Bridge has provided us with a 1.78:1 1080p transfer of the film. I cannot comment if this is cropped or matted from the 2.35:1 transfer. It looks a lot better than the 1080i transfer of Dracula 2000. The audio is again average and it scores a 2.5/5.

Third Film: Dracula III: Legacy, the priest and lone med student are tracking down Dracula in the Eastern Europe. Dracula again changes his form and looks nothing like the vampire from the previous installment and is now portrayed by Rutger Hauer. Soon the priest and Dracula duke it out to save the fate of mankind.

The film scores a three out of five. I feel a little let down that we go from Dracula 2000 to Dracula II: Ascension and then finally to Dracula III: Legacy; I mean, what was one of the key points of Dracula 2000? That Dracula's blood line kept on and then after that, they just ignored it and focused on these med school kids. The video again was presented in 1.78:1 1080p by Echo Bridge. Not sure if it's cropped or open matted because the last time I saw this movie was when it came out in 2005 on DVD; video gets a 2.5/5. I have a problem with the audio presented on this disc; the dialogue sounds echo-y and the music is way too loud. Audio scores a 1/5.

Fourth Film: They. A college med student gets a message from a childhood friend who's been having trouble sleeping. It turns out that there's something evil and sinister hiding in the dark. These creatures are coming to take them to hell or whatever.

As you can tell by my last sentence, I couldn't care about this film at all. I found it to be downright horrible. The ending was one of the biggest pieces of BS I have ever seen. It was like; "Why don't they do that from the get-go?" Movie scores a .5/5. The video scores a 3.5/5 as Echo Bridge gives us a 2.35:1, OAR, 1080p transfer. The video has print damage that pops up here and there throughout the film; it's not that bad but it could have been a better transfer. The audio is just average again, like every other film on this disc.

Overall:
Film: 4 + 3 + 3 + .5 = 10.5/4 = 2.625 = 2.5/5
Video: 2.5 + 3 + 2.5 + 3.5 = 11.5/4 = 2.875 = 3/5.
Audio: 2.5/5
Extras: 0/5
Overall: 2.5 + 3 + 2.5 = 8/4 = 2/5

Even though it gets a two out of five, I can recommend this if you need the Dracula sequels in HD. I cannot stress it enough that if you're just buying this for Dracula 2000, skip it and get the Canadian release by Alliance because it's presented in it's original 2.35:1 and has an amazing transfer. They, which sucked in my opinion, was the only film they presented in it's original aspect ratio. Don't pay more than $10 for this release.

The Alphabet Killer (2008)

Movie: 1/5
Video: 3.5/5
Audio: 3.5/5
Extras: 0/5
Overall: 2/5

Not Even Titties Can Save This One.

As much as I love police/detective films, this movie blew. This movie was a complete waste of time. I found myself bored and bored some more to the point where I was like; "How much longer is left?" Titties couldn't even save this movie. It's as bad as "Transmorphers: Fall of Man". The story is based around the Alphabet Killer who struck in the 1970's. Killer was never found. So, take a wild guess about a movie about a serial killer who was never caught ends? You want to watch a better detective drama, check out "Crimson Rivers".

Video looks average. That opening logo by New Films International was poor looking. I think Anchor Bay could have done a better job on the transfer, but then again, this movie blows. We have only a decent 5.1 DD track which sounds average. And zero extra features or a menu or a subtitle or anything like that.

Avoid. Overall, I give this a 2/5. Waste of time, talent, and film!

Transmorphers: Fall of Man (2009)

Movie: 0.5/5
Video: 3/5
Audio: 2.5/5
Extras: 0.5/5
Overall: 1.5/5

Makes the First Film Look Like a Masterpiece. I Am Serious.

Wow, where to begin. The first film is infamously bad because of how it was a cash in of Michael Bay's "Transformers". This time around, we have a prequel to the Leigh Scott film and they shouldn't have even bothered. This one is up there in comparison to The Asylum's "Countdown: Armageddon" and I was not too thrilled with that one. Seriously, some of this was so laugh out loud bad it was sad. You got a woman running around like a prostitute from the 1970's with this bright freakin' pink get up and hooker boots. Shots that are stock footage from previous Asylum films like "War of the Worlds 2" and some of this footage was re-used in the 2011 Mockbuster "Battle of Los Angeles".

I usually get a kick out of watching films from The Asylum because some of them are so bad it's good. This one is not that kind of Asylum flick that I like. I really dug "I Am Omega" and "Transmorphers" to name a few. I honestly cannot recommend this one at all to anyone. Avoid it like that plague because it makes the first film look like a masterpiece. I am serious. .5/5.

The video is the same because The Asylum shoots all their stuff with the same average looking camera that surely has gone through hell and back. There was a shot of Bruce Boxleitner that had some severe pixelating and interlacing problems which was noticeable for that two seconds. Video scores a 3/5.

Audio is 5.1 and 2.0. Echo Bridge gave us better audio presentations when they were releasing Asylum titles back in 2010. Audio is just average, 2.5/5. Extra features are lame in this release; a making of, bloopers, and two deleted scenes. Whoopty-doo, they aren't worth the time to watch. Extras score a dismal .5/5.

Overall, this is a bad Asylum title. If you want to watch a decent one; check out "Haunting of Winchester House" or "I Am Omega" or even "Transmorphers". Just avoid this one because it's not worth the time. Overall, I give "Transmorphers: Fall of Man" a 1.5/5.

A Serbian Film (2010)

Movie: 4/5
Video: 5/5
Audio: 5/5
Extras: 0.5/5
Overall: 4/5

A *Censored* Film.

NOTE: Movie score is from how I originally saw the uncut version.
I CANNOT RECOMMEND THIS RELEASE DUE TO HARSH REMOVAL OF SEX AND VIOLENCE.

A Serbian Film, a highly controversial film that mixes hard sex and violence to give off a political message. However, in the German version, most sex and violence is removed. The censored German release of the film clocks in at 1:30:02 whereas the uncut version clocks in at about one hour forty-four minutes. The story is that Milos is a pornstar who has settled down but is given an offer by an old co-star who tells him that something big is happening in the porn industry in Serbia. However, horror ensues as Milos is dragged deep into something he cannot simply walk away from.

The film is heavily cut in the final act where is about one minute in length in the German release whereas in the screener, it was several minutes long. This really causes disruption in the score as it jumps shot to shot due to censorship. One cut that I am pleased with in this censored version is the "Newborn" scene. We do not see it but you do hear Vukmir screaming the line. Now, if this wasn't in the film at all, even in the original cut, I wouldn't mind at all as I do feel this is the central nerve for people being disgusted with the film. To the people that have seen the film, with all the sex and violence removed, you can get a good idea of what is missing.

The video presentation is superb. One of the best transfers I have ever seen as this was shot on the same equipment that such films like "District 9" was shot on. I award the video a 5/5. The audio, which is mislabeled on the box art is Serbian and German (Dub) in DTS-HD MA 5.1 and accompanied with removable German subtitles. The audio is like the video, SUPERB, 5/5. Only extra on the release is a trailer dubbed in German which is 576i.

Overall, the release gets a 4/5, but I cannot recommend this release due to the harsh censorship of the film. The disc is Region Free with the only problematic feature being the theatrical trailer. But, don't waste your time with it if you look to see a more complete cut like the US or Swedish or UK releases.