Blu-ray Review: THE GREEN INFERNO (2013)

THE GREEN INFERNO
Directed by:   Eli Roth
Distributed by:  Universal Pictures Home Entertainment

  If you are a horror movie fan, then you have surely heard about Eli Roth's latest film, THE GREEN INFERNO.   It was made a few years ago, but then was in distribution limbo for quite sometime.  Luckily the great folks at Universal Pictures took a chance on the film and it was given a wide theatrical release back in September of last year.   If you failed to catch this film at the theater, it is available now on DVD and Blu-ray, so get your hands on a copy asap.    Here is the basic plot synopsis from the Universal website:

  The mastermind behind the Hostel franchise and Cabin Fever, horror auteur Eli Roth, serves up a feast of gut-wrenching terror in the gruesome fear-fest The Green Inferno. Determined to protect the Amazon rainforest, a group of student activists fly to Peru only to crash-land deep in the jungle. Captured by a pack of bloodthirsty cannibals, the survivors suffer unspeakable acts of butchery at the hands of the very tribe they were trying to save. A non-stop barrage of carnage and chills, The Green Inferno is an unhinged blast!

  One of my favorite sub-genres of horror is the Cannibal film.   There is something extremely disturbing with the thought of humans that hunt, kill, and eat other humans.    We were given many cannibal films back in the 70's and early 80's, most notable were CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST and CANNIBAL FEROX.     I love these films and assumed this sub-genre was dead.  I assumed no filmmaker wanted to tackle such a taboo subject matter such as cannibalism.   Thank goodness my assumption was wrong and what better filmmaker to bring us as a new cannibal film than master of horror, Eli Roth!

  Mr. Roth brings back true horror with this latest project.   If you are tired of all the PG-13 horror films coming out lately, you will be glad to finally see a true, rated R horror film.   The film definitely earns it's R rating.   There is some extremely graphic gore in this film, as you would expect with a cannibal film.   The story line is good as well, with a nice little twist at the end.   The acting was great throughout the film, and the camera work was excellent.    

  If I had to find a flaw with this film, it was the bit of comic relief Roth threw in concerning some pot and the cannibals getting high.  That part just seemed silly to me and sort of ruined the flow of the dark subject matter the rest of the film has.    But that is just one little gripe.  Overall I loved this movie and really welcome the cannibal sub-genre back thanks to Eli Roth.  I hope other filmmakers take note and we can see some other cannibal films in the near future!

  THE GREEN INFERNO is available now on DVD and Blu-ray and contains the following special features:

*  Photo Gallery
*  Feature Commentary with Co-Writer/Director/Producer Eli Roth, Producer Nicolas Lopez, and Stars Lorenza Izzo, Aaron Burns, Kirby Bliss Blanton, and Daryl Sabara.


CLICK HERE to watch the trailer
CLICK HERE to purchase the DVD
CLICK HERE to purchase the Blu-ray

And the winner is.......

 Congratulations to the winner of my latest Blu-ray giveaway courtesy of Universal Home Entertainment and ThinkJam Distributing!!   Up for grabs was a Blu-ray copy of THE VISIT from director M. Night Shyamalan.    The results are in, and the random number generator picked comment/entry # 5 which was Tony Brock!  

 Congratulations Tony!  I'll be in touch to get your mailing address, and your Blu-ray will be sent to you directly from ThinkJam. 

  Congrats, and check back in a few days when my next giveaway will go live...up next will be the chance to win a copy of the cannibal gore fest, THE GREEN INFERNO!

 Thanks to all those that entered!

Blu-ray Review: DRACULA UNTOLD (2014)

DRACULA UNTOLD
Directed by  Gary Shore
Distributed by  Universal Pictures Home Entertainment

  I used to think I wasn't a big fan of vampire films, but I have seen quite a few lately that I have really enjoyed.  The latest is last year's hit film, DRACULA UNTOLD, which turned out to be even better than I expected it to be.   Here is the film's plot synopsis courtesy of the film's official website:

  Witness the origin story of one of legend's most captivating figures in the action-adventure, Dracula Untold. The year is 1462 and Transylvania has enjoyed a prolonged period of peace under the just and fair rule of the battle-weary Vlad III (Luke Evans, Fast & Furious 6, The Hobbit series), the prince of Wallachia. But when Sultan Mehmed II (Dominic Cooper, Captain America: The First Avenger) demands 1,000 of Wallachia's boys – including Vlad's own son – become child soldiers in his army, Vlad must enter into a Faustian bargain to save his family and his people. He gains the strength of 100 men, the speed of a falling star, and the power to crush his enemies. In exchange, he's inflicted with an insatiable thirst for human blood that could force him into a life of darkness and destroy all that he holds dear.

  This film was a very interesting take on the Dracula story.  I honestly have never been a big fan of vampire films  (I'm more of a zombie type guy), so I know very little about the Dracula story.  I don't think I had ever heard much of a background story about Dracula, so it was interesting to see how and why he became a vampire.  He is shown as a hero in this film, the good guy, which is something I have never associated Dracula with.

  The film was a very well done.  The acting was superb from everyone involved and the cinematography was amazing.  The scenery and some of the shots were tremendous, and while most all of it was CG, it still looked great.  While the film is a vampire movie first and foremost, it was also war/battle movie similar to the likes of a film like 300.   The battle scenes were spectacular and it was nice to see the good mix of horror and action.    

  DRACULA UNTOLD is a film I would highly recommend.  The films was great and is actually pretty family friendly overall.  If you have older kids, they could probably watch this film as there was not any real gore and no explicit sex scenes.   Now don't get me wrong, I love my horror with lots of gore and nudity, but it is nice every now and then to find a fun film in the horror genre that the whole family can enjoy together.

  DRACULA UNTOLD is available now on DVD and Blu-ray and contains the following special features:

Luke Evans: Creating a Legend  (Blu-ray exclusive)

Alternate Opening with Optional Commentary by Director Gary Shore and Production Designer François Audouy  (Blu-ray exclusive)

Deleted Scenes with Optional Commentary by Director Gary Shore and Production Designer François Audouy  (Blu-ray exclusive)

Day in the Life - Luke Evans

Dracula Retold

Slaying 1000

The Land of Dracula  (Blu-ray exclusive)

Feature Commentary with Director Gary Shore and Production Designer François Audouy

CLICK HERE to watch the trailer
CLICK HERE to purchase the DVD
CLICK HERE to purchase the Blu-ray/DVD combo pack

THE PURGE is here! And so is this cool PURGE giveaway!!

  I have been looking forward to THE PURGE for some time now, hopefully I will get a chance to see it soon.   For those that don't know,  THE PURGE is a film that opened in theaters tonight that focuses on a family trying to survive the night during a period called "the purge".  This is a 12-hour time period where all emergency services are shut down by the government, basically creating a 12 hour time of anarchy and rioting.  This apparently helps people get out there aggressions so the other hours of the year are more peaceful. It helps the crime rate and unemployment rate.  Pretty crazy stuff! 

 Well, not only is THE PURGE finally here,  you can also win a pretty cool t-shirt prize pack courtesy of Universal Pictures and the great folks at partnershub.com!   They have created a pretty cool quiz to test your survival skills to see how you would do during the purge.   Click the graphic below to take THE PURGE SURVIVAL QUIZ and see how you do!    Leave your quiz results (stating whether you would survive or not) in the comment section of this post, along with your name and email address for your chance to win!   A winner will be chosen at random from the comments on June 17th.  One comment per person please!  Thanks!!

Take the quiz by pressing the big red "Take the Quiz" button below!