Extraordinary sci-fi ARCHENEMY out 22nd Feb

Max Fist is the hero we all need in these troubled times in Altitude’s extraordinary sci-fi action adventure ARCHENEMY, released 22nd February on DVD & Digital.

Max Fist was the greatest hero of a vast city in another universe. He saved his world from destruction but crashed through space and time... and wound up here - a desolate American suburb. Or so he says.

Powerless and a broken drunk, no one believes Max’s stories about his glory days until he meets a kid called Hamster. When the mob comes after Hamster’s family, Max must learn what it means to be a hero — here, now, without superpowers — one brutal blow at a time.

A gritty and moody masterwork of urban mayhem featuring, “Outstanding performances, and stunning set-pieces” (Starburst) ARCHENEMY is a truly original superhero story for the 21st century.

Elijah Wood’s SpectreVision, the studio behind sensational hits Mandy and Color Out of Space, delivers another slice of genre excellence, in conjunction with Legion M (the first fan-owned film company), with a fantastically colorful and entertaining blend of epic superhero mythology and modern noir, recalling Sin City, Hancock and Watchmen, from writer director Adam Egypt Mortimer, the red hot talent behind 2019’s acclaimed psychological horror Daniel Isn’t Real.

Featuring a throbbing synth score (from composer Umberto) and stylish visuals that mix in striking animated sequences, the film features a host of remarkable performances from a truly diverse cast - including True Blood’s Joe Manganiello as the mysterious Max Fist, Zolee Griggs (Wu-Tang: An American Saga), Skylan Brooks (TV’s Empire), Jessica Allain (from the forthcoming Texas Chainsaw Massacre) - and unexpectedly nasty, against-the-grain appearances from comedy superstars Paul Scheer (The League) and Glenn Howerton (It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia).

Pre-order the UK DVD from Amazon.co.uk

 

 

Christopher Smith’s - THE BANISHING - Releases 26th March

The Shining meets Downton Abbey in the chilling new ghost story THE BANISHING, starring Jessica Brown Findlay (Brave New World, Harlots) and directed by genre master Christopher Smith (Black Death, Severance, Triangle). 

1930s, England. Linus, his wife Marianne and their daughter Adelaide move into town, where Linus has been posted as the new reverend. He’s been tasked by the Church to renew the villagers’ faith, which has been lost after the disappearance of the previous reverend’s family, who lived in the very same mysterious manor where Linus and his family have settled into. 

A story of isolation and a family strained to breaking point, THE BANISHING is the perfect lockdown-era chiller for fans of spine-tinglers like The Others and Rebecca.

Soon after their arrival, strange events start to occur: ghostly voices, dark figures dressed as monks, mysterious totems, and Adelaide’s behavior becoming stranger by the day. It soon becomes clear that a malicious entity seeks to possess Adelaide and that the Church is hiding a terrible secret…

THE BANISHING has a terrific cast, including Downton Abbey’s Brown Findlay as a young woman uncovering dark secrets in her new home; Sean Harris (Red Riding, Mission: Impossible) as ghost hunter Harry Price; and John Lynch (Isolation) as a sinister ‘Man of God’.

THE BANISHING will be released in cinemas and on digital platforms March 26th 2021, courtesy of AMC Networks’ Shudder, in partnership with Vertigo Releasing. 

 

Arrow Video FrightFest announces Glasgow Film Festival 2021 virtual line-up

Welcome to the 16th edition of Arrow Video FrightFest Glasgow, which, despite continuing COVID-19 restrictions, is back to present a virtual six-pack of tasty titles; an extravaganza of the dark arts that will leave you stirred, shaken and shocked.  

There will be six online presentations, including the UK premiere of Kyle Rankin’s controversial high school siege drama RUN HIDE FIGHT, starring Isabel May as a fiercely independent student taking on a quartet of invading shooters, and the UK premiere of OUT OF THIS WORLD (HORS DU MONDE), a disturbing, compelling study of obsession from brilliant new French director Marc Fouchard. It boasts a stunning performance by Kevin Mischel as a mentally-challenged musician turned Uber driver.

A few years back Here Comes Hell, a Black & White mystery thriller, was a FrightFest Glasgow sensation, and THE WOMAN WITH LEOPARD SHOES (LA FEMME AUX CHAUSSURES LEOPARD) is another satisfying retro fix from first timer Alexis Bruchon. Expect an impressively old school yet ultra-modern noir thriller that twists, turns and twists again.

There are also two outstanding Canadian entries in the line-up – the European premiere of AMERICAN BADGER, Kirk Caouette’s gritty and turbo-driven hard action thriller and the UK premiere of Cody Calahan’s nostalgia-fest VICIOUS FUN, a skewering of 1980s fashions which slashes its way through the current era of genre filmmaking.

Finally, from director Christopher Alender, producer of the Glasgow FrightFest past selections Southbound and The Mortuary Collection, is the UK premiere of THE OLD WAYS, a terror tale taken from sinister Latin American folklore

The six films, which will be geo-locked to the UK and limited to 500 tickets, will be available on-demand between the 5th & 7th of March, so can be viewed over those three days

Tickets will go on sale on Monday 18 January, priced £9.99. Please note that passes are not available. For more information: www.glasgowfilm.org/festival

Alan Jones, co-director of FrightFest commentated: “FrightFest might be presenting a more boutique line-up than usual, but our determined response has still been to showcase the bold and vital work artists have felt compelled to make under such unique conditions. We stay resolute in our continual mission to bring those must-see genre titles to their first UK audiences, especially our devoted Scottish community”.

Film details

RUN HIDE FIGHT (UK Premiere)

 
Director: Kyle Rankin. Cast: Isabel May, Thomas Jane, Treat Williams. US 2020. 109 mins. 18.  Contains Body hatred, fat phobia, violence, death or dying, blood, sexism and misogyny, hateful language.

Synopsis: A normal school day is brought to a brutal halt when invaded by armed students on a murderous mission. As the shooting starts and the blood starts to flow, Zoe is lucky to get out alive. But then she heads back inside the building to rescue as many staff and pupils as she can. It’s High School DIE HARD as Zoe uses her survival skills to outsmart the killers.

View the trailer on YouTube.

 
OUT OF THE WORLD / HORS DU MONDE (UK Premiere)
 

Director: Marc Fouchard. Cast: Kevin Mischel, Aurélia Poirier, June Assal. France 2020. 97 mins. French with English subtitles. 18. Contains sexual assault, violence, death or dying, blood, mental illness.

Synopsis: The very private Leo has issues communicating with others due to past trauma and only lives for his music. For now, not able to have a career as a composer, he works as an Uber driver and lives in his car. When Leo picks up Amélie, a deaf dancer, he sees a like-minded spirit, connected to the same remote sound universe yet cut off from the world, just like him. But Leo is hiding a dark and dangerous secret.

View the trailer on YouTube.


VICIOUS FUN (UK Premiere)
 

Director: Cody Calahan. Cast: Evan Marsh, Amber Goldfarb, Ari Millen.  Canada 2020. 96 mins. 18. Contains abuse, violence, death or dying, blood.

Synopsis: Joel, a caustic 1980s film critic for a national horror magazine, accidentally stumbles into a secret underground self-help group for serial killers. Can he match wits with five exterminators and make it through the night alive? Kill or be killed, Joel will have to find his inner assassin and muster hidden strengths to defeat the maniacs in his midst.

View the trailer on YouTube. 
 

THE OLD WAYS (UK Premiere)

Director: Christopher Alender. Cast: Brigitte Kali Canales, Andrea Cortés, Julia Vera. USA 2020. 90 mins. 18. Contains abuse, violence, kidnapping, death or dying, blood

Synopsis: Cristina, a journalist of Mexican origins, travels to the home of her ancestors in Veracruz to investigate a story involving sorcery, witchcraft and healers. Once there, she is

kidnapped by a group of mysterious locals who claim that she's possessed by the devil and that she needs to undergo an exorcism. But as she tries to escape her nightmarish situation, Cristina starts to believe that her secretive captors may actually be right...

View the trailer on YouTube.
 

AMERICAN BADGER (European Premiere)
 

Director: Kirk Caouette. Cast: Kirk Caouette, Andrea Stefancikova, Michael Kopsa. Canada 2020. 82 mins. 18. Contains abuse, kidnapping, death or dying, blood.

Synopsis: Meet Badger, because his real name is Dean, and that's the lamest ever for a hitman. Like all American Badgers, he prefers to be alone, and has hardly spoken a word to anyone except his Handler. But all that is about to change with his latest assignment - make friends with call girl Velvet, extract information about the criminal Albanian gang she works for, and then kill her. What he doesn’t know is that Velvet is like a daughter to the mob boss and all hell is about to break loose.

View the trailer on YouTube.
 

THE WOMAN WITH LEOPARD SHOES/LA FEMME AUX CHAUSSURES LEOPARD (Scottish Premiere)

Director: Alexis Bruchon. Cast: Paul Bruchon. France 2020. 80 mins. French with English subtitles. 18. Contains death or dying, blood.

A thief is engaged by a mysterious woman to steal a box in a house. The job goes well but, as he’s escaping, dozens of people arrive for a party. The thief just has time to hide in a study. Confined in this little room, he tries to flee but things turn for the worse when he makes a shocking discovery… 

View the trailer on YouTube.

For full programme details: http://www.frightfest.co.uk/

 

 

DEXTER Slices Into Fright-Rags Apparel

America's favorite serial killer comes to Fright-Rags! Ring in the new year with officially licensed Dexter apparel, plus restocks of five classic designs.

Hot off the news of a series revival, Fright-Rags has released its Dexter collection. It features four T-shirts, including an homage to Maniac, and a blood-spattered snapback hat.

Fright-Rags has also brought five fan-favorite tees back from the dead with reprints of Return of the Living Dead, They Live, Horror of Dracula, Creepshow, and The Crow.

The Dexter collection and restocks are on sale now at Fright-Rags.com.

The horror apparel company has plenty more in store for 2021, including an Evil Dead 40th anniversary collection later this month.

 

 

Brand new 4K restorations of DEMONS 1&2 out 22nd Feb from Arrow

Arrow Video is proud to present brand new 4K restorations of both these classic films, more vivid and terrifying than ever before, alongside a wealth of bonus features old and new, making this the ultimate experience in celluloid terror.

 

In the early 1980s, Dario Argento, the famed horror maestro responsible for such classics as Suspiria and Deep Red, branched out from directing into producing, shepherding the work of his fellow filmmakers to the screen – among them Lamberto Bava (Delirium, A Blade in the Dark), son of the legendary Mario Bava. Together, they crafted two tales of terror that would become synonymous with Italian 80s horror, in which the veil between the real world and the silver screen is torn asunder.

In 1985’s Demons, a motley assortment of unwitting filmgoers accept invitations to a screening at the mysterious Metropol theatre. However, as the brutal slasher film unspools, the horror breaks free from the constraints of the screen, unleashing a swarm of slathering demons, intent on spreading their evil plague across the globe. Then, in 1986’s Demons 2, Hell comes direct to the living room as bloodthirsty demons descend on a luxury apartment block, devouring the residents and propagating their deadly plague.

LIMITED EDITION CONTENTS:

• Brand new 4K restoration of both films by Arrow Films from the original camera negatives
• 4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray presentations of both films in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible)
• Limited edition packaging featuring newly commissioned artwork by Adam Rabalais
• Limited edition 60-page booklet featuring new writing by Roberto Curti, Rachael Nisbet and Alexandra Heller-Nicholas
• Double-sided fold-out poster
• Exclusive mystery sneak preview movie ticket (admits one to the Metropol Theatre)

DISC 1 – DEMONS
• Two versions of the film: the full-length original cut in Italian and English, and the slightly trimmed US cut, featuring alternate dubbing and sound effects
• Brand new lossless English and Italian 5.1 audio tracks on the original cut
• Original lossless English and Italian 2.0 stereo audio tracks on the original cut
• Original lossless English 1.0 mono audio track on the US cut
• Newly translated English subtitles for the Italian soundtrack
• Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing for both English soundtracks
• New audio commentary by critics Kat Ellinger and Heather Drain, co-hosts of the Hell’s Bells podcast
• Archival audio commentary by director Lamberto Bava and special makeup effects artist Sergio Stivaletti, moderated by journalist Loris Curci
• Archival audio commentary by Lamberto Bava, Sergio Stivaletti, composer Claudio Simonetti and actress Geretta Geretta
• Produced by Dario Argento, a new visual essay by author and critic Michael Mackenzie exploring the legendary filmmaker’s career as a producer
• Dario’s Demon Days, an archival interview with writer/producer Dario Argento
• Defining an Era in Music, an archival interview with Claudio Simonetti
• Splatter Spaghetti Style, an archival interview with long-time Argento collaborator Luigi Cozzi
• Italian theatrical trailer
• International English theatrical trailer
• US theatrical trailer

DISC 2 – DEMONS 2
• Brand new lossless English and Italian 5.1 audio tracks
• Original lossless English and Italian 2.0 stereo audio tracks
• Newly translated English subtitles for the Italian soundtrack
• Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing for the English soundtrack
• New audio commentary by critic Travis Crawford
• Archival audio commentary by director Lamberto Bava and special makeup effects artist Sergio Stivaletti, moderated by journalist Loris Curci
• Together and Apart, a new visual essay on space and technology in Demons and Demons 2 by author and critic Alexandra Heller-Nicholas
• Creating Creature Carnage, an archival interview with Sergio Stivaletti
• Bava to Bava, an archival interview with Luigi Cozzi on the history of Italian horror
• Italian theatrical trailer
• English theatrical trailer

Pre-order the UK 4K UHD set from Amazon.co.uk

Pre-order the UK BD set from Amazon.co.uk

 

 

 

POSSESSOR on Digital HD and Blu-ray/DVD February

From the visionary mind of writer director Brandon Cronenberg (Antiviral), POSSESSOR is a game-changing sci-fi thriller about elite, corporate assassin Tasya Vos (Andrea Riseborough, Mandy).

Using brain-implant technology, Vos takes control of other people’s bodies to execute high profile targets. As she sinks deeper into her latest assignment Vos becomes trapped inside a mind that threatens to obliterate her.

Possessor features a stellar cast including Christopher Abbott (It Comes at Night, The Sinner), Rossif Sutherland (Guest of Honour), Tuppence Middleton (Downton Abbey), Sean Bean (Game of Thrones) and Jennifer Jason Leigh (The Hateful Eight).

BLU-RAY SPECIAL FEATURES
- Deleted Scenes
- A Heightened World: The Look of Possessor
- Identity Crisis: Bringing Possessor to Life
- The Joy of Practical: The Effects of Possessor
- Short Film 'Please Speak Continuously and Describe Your Experiences as They Come to You' by Brandon Cronenberg

 

POSSESSOR is available on Digital HD from 1st Feb and Blu-ray/DVD from 8th Feb.

 Pre-order the UK BD from Amazon.co.uk

 Pre-order the UK DVD from Amazon.co.uk

 

 

SCHOOL'S OUT FOREVER - coming to VOD Feb

No sooner has 15-year-old Lee Keegan been expelled from his private school, than an apocalyptic event wipes out most of the world's population. 

With his father dead and mother trapped abroad, Lee is given one instruction: go back to school. But safety and security at St. Mark's School for Boys is in short supply. 

Its high walls can't stop the local parish council from forming a militia and imposing marshal law, while inside the dorms the end of the world is having a dangerous effect on his best friend and his unrequited crush on the school nurse isn't helping him concentrate on staying alive.

SCHOOL'S OUT FOREVER is released to UK VOD outlets 15th Feb and will be available on BD and DVD from 12th April.