MORE DAN CURTIS BLU-RAYS!

Just last week was announced the Blu-ray editions of Dan Curtis' trio of horror films. Let's toss in a few more with new Blu-ray issues of his TV movies DEAD OF NIGHT and collections GOTHIC TALES and LATE NIGHT MYSTERIES. Had these been solicited by anyone but Kino Lorber, they might have been sold as a box set. This way we get to choose from the ones we want and pass on the ones we don't. I like that idea.

Dan Curtis' Dead of Night Blu-ray

Kino Lorber have detailed their upcoming Blu-ray release of Dan Curtis' Dan Curtis' Dead of Night (1977), starring Ed Begley Jr., E.J. André, Ann Doran, Christina Hart, and Orin Cannon. The release is scheduled to arrive on the market on October 28.

Description: From the legendary dark minds of producer-director Dan Curtis (Dark Shadows, The Night Stalker, Trilogy of Terror) and writer Richard Matheson (Tales of Terror, The Last Man on Earth, The Twilight Zone) comes this thrilling triptych of spellbinding stories. Second Chance – After buying an antique automobile, Frank (Ed Begley Jr.) restores the vehicle to its original condition. Along with the car, Frank is suddenly transported back in time to the year 1926. Based on a story by Jack Finney (Invasion of the Body Snatchers). No Such Thing as a Vampire – Alexis (Anjanette Comer), the mistress of an old mansion, is terrified of vampires. When her husband (Patrick Macnee) calls in a friend (Horst Buchholz) to examine her, a macabre and bloody scheme unfolds. Bobby – In the dead of night, a boy (Lee H. Montgomery), thought to be deceased, surprises his despondent mother (Joan Hackett) at the family beach house, bringing her both extreme joy and overwhelming terror.

Special Features and Technical Specs:

• NEW Audio Commentary by Audio Commentary by novelist and critic Tim Lucas
• Introduction by Jeff Thompson, Author of The Television Horrors of Dan Curtis
• Dead of Night - A Darkness At Blaisedon (HD Up-Res): 1969 TV Pilot (51:53)
• Robert Corbett's Music Score Highlights
• No Such Thing as a Vampire: Deleted Scenes
• Deleted Extended Opening Title Sequence
• Newly Commissioned Cover Art by Tom Hodge/The Dude Designs
• Limited Edition O-Card Slipcase
• Optional English Subtitles

Dan Curtis' Gothic Tales Blu-ray

Kino Lorber have revealed that they are preparing a Blu-ray release of Dan Curtis' Gothic Tales (1973-1974). The release is scheduled to arrive on the market in late November.

CONTENT:

The Picture of Dorian Gray (1973)

Not long after having his portrait painted by the artist Basil Hallward (Charles Aidman), handsome Dorian Gray (Shane Briant) meets Lord Harry Wotton (Nigel Davenport) and falls under his influence. A radical libertine, Wotton encourages the boy to indulge every hedonistic impulse, and soon Dorian becomes notorious for his debauchery. Looking at his own portrait one day, he fancifully wishes that it might age rather than he -- and, miraculously, gets his wish.

The Turn of the Screw (1974)

An English governess is hired to take care of two adorable orphans, who turn out to be not exactly what they seem to be.

Dan Curtis' Late-Night Mysteries Blu-ray

Kino Lorber will release on Blu-ray Dan Curtis' Late-Night Mysteries (1974). The release is scheduled to arrive on the market on September 23.

Description: Perhaps no figure exerted a greater influence on 1970s television horror than Dan Curtis. Having created the daytime drama Dark Shadows (1966-71), and while developing The Night Stalker into a weekly series, he produced stand-alone thrillers for ABC Television's Wide World Mystery.

Originally shot on videotape, the four films in this collection have been carefully adapted to HD for this Blu-ray release.

Shadow of Fear stars Claude Akins (B.J. and the Bear) as a disgraced police officer hired to investigate crimes surrounding a psychologically troubled housewife (Anjanette Comer). In The Invasion of Carol Enders, the spirit of a car crash victim is reincarnated into the body of another patient (Meredith Baxter, Family Ties). Come Die With Me follows the cat-and-mouse relationship between a cavalier playboy (George Maharis) and the housekeeper who tries to blackmail him (Eileen Brennan, Private Benjamin). A wholesome family experiences a Kafkaesque miscarriage of justice when they are accused of drug trafficking in Nightmare at 43 Hillcrest.

Special Features and Technical Specs:

Introductions to All Four Films by Jeff Thompson, Author of House of Dan Curtis: The Television Mysteries of the Dark Shadows Auteur

Shadow of Fear Commentary by Amanda Reyes, Author of Are You in the House Alone? A TV Movie Compendium 1964-1999

The Invasion of Carol Enders Commentary by Television Historian Scott Skelton

Come Die WIth Me Commentary by Author/Podcaster Dan Budnik and Film Historian Robert Kelly

Nightmare at 43 Hillcrest Commentary by Film Historians Amanda Reyes and Heidi Honeycutt

EXTRA! RE-ANIMATOR 40TH ANNIVERSARY 4K BLU-RAY

Ignite Films is also getting into the Halloween mood with their 40th anniversary 4K Blu-ray of Stuart Gordon's cult classic, RE-ANIMATOR. And unlike the disappointing news about the upcoming UK release of the 4K GORGO, Ignite is also going to release a standard Blu-ray edition of RE-ANIMATOR. I like that idea, too!

Ignite Films will celebrate the 40th anniversary of Stuart Gordon's cult film Re-Animator (1985) with a brand new 4K Blu-ray release, which is scheduled to arrive on the market on November 11th.

A standalone Blu-ray release will be available for purchase on the same date as well.

Description: In celebration of its 40th anniversary, Re-Animator returns in a stunning 4K restoration, bringing new life to this horror classic. Based on H.P. Lovecraft's twisted tale, the film follows Herbert West, a brilliant yet unhinged medical student who creates a serum capable of reanimating the dead--with horrifying consequences. Blending grotesque horror and dark humor, Stuart Gordon's Re-Animator shocked audiences and became an instant cult classic upon its release in 1985. This vivid 4K edition captures every gory detail of West's obsession, inviting fans old and new to experience the film's boundary-pushing terror like never before.

Special Features and Technical Specs:

• TWO-DISC (4K BLU-RAY/BLU-RAY) COMBO PACK RELEASE
• DOLBY VISION/HDR PRESENTATION OF THE FILM
• Re-Animator at 40: A Conversation with Jeffrey Combs, Barbara Crampton, and Brian Yuzna
• Piece By Piece: Cutting Re-Animator – A New Interview with Editor Lee Percy
• The Horror of It All: The Legacy and Impact of Re-Animator
• I Give Life: A Look Back at Re-Animator: The Musical
• Suzie Sorority and the Good College Boy: An Interview with Carolyn Purdy-Gordon
• Re-Animating a Horror Classic: The 4K Restoration of Re-Animator
• The Organic Theater Company of Chicago: A 1977 documentary featuring Stuart Gordon
• New 40th anniversary 4K Blu-ray trailer
• Integral Version (105 mins)
• Isolated Score
• Audio commentary with director Stuart Gordon and actors Graham Skipper and Jesse Merlin of Re-Animator: The Musical
• Audio commentary with Stuart Gordon
• Audio commentary with producer Brian Yuzna, actors Jeffrey Combs, Barbara Crampton, Bruce Abbott, and Robert Sampson
• Re-Animator: Resurrectus - Feature-length documentary on the making of the film featuring extensive interviews with cast and crew
• Interviews with director Stuart Gordon and producer Brian Yuzna, writer Dennis Paoli, composer Richard Band and former Fangoria editor Tony Timpone
• Music discussion with composer Richard Band
• The Catastrophe of Success: Stuart Gordon and The Organic Theater - Director Stuart Gordon discusses his early theater roots and his continued commitment to the stage
• Theater of Blood - Re-Animator: The Musical lyricist Mark Nutter on adapting the cult classic for musical theater
• Extended scenes
• Deleted scene
• Trailer & TV Spots
• Still Gallery
• Barbara Crampton In Conversation: The Re-Animator star sits down with journalist Alan Jones for this career-spanning 2015 interview
• A Guide to Lovecraft Cinema: Chris Lackey, host of the H.P. Lovecraft Literary Podcast, provides a comprehensive look at the many cinematic incarnations of Lovecraft's work.
• Doug Bradley's Spinechillers: Herbert West, Re-Animator actor Jeffrey Combs reads H.P. Lovecraft's original classic story

EXTRA!

One of the tales in Dan Curtis' DEAD OF NIGHT, "No Such Thing as a Vampire", is adapted from a short story by fantasist Richard Matheson. It was first published in PLAYBOY'S October 1959 issue. It was reprinted in THE PLAYBOY BOOK OF HORROR AND THE SUPERNATURAL (Playboy Press, 1967). The following is from the magazine. Art is by Jurgens.

If you care to see who was the Playmate of the Month for this issue, go HERE.