4K UHD Review: RE-ANIMATOR (1985)

RE-ANIMATOR

Directed by:  Stuart Gordon

Distributed by:  Second Sight Films

 If you haven't seen Stuart Gordon's RE-ANIMATOR, stop what you are doing right now and go watch it.  It's in my list of top 5 horror films of all time.  It's a classic film that never gets old, no matter how many times I watch it.  Here is the basic plot synopsis from IMDb.com:

After an odd new medical student arrives on campus, a dedicated local and his girlfriend become involved in bizarre experiments centering around the re-animation of dead tissue.

 Now that is a very basic plot synopsis about a film that is anything but basic.  This is a brilliant film that keeps you entertained from start to finish.  The gore effects are amazing and very plentiful!   This was before the age of CGI, so you get to enjoy nothing but gooey practical effects.   The acting is top notch with Jeffrey Combs giving a great performance as Dr. Herbert West and the amazing Barbara Crampton as the Dean of the college's daughter, Megan Halsey.  I assume most horror fans have seen this film, so I am not going to go into any more details about the film itself.  We all know it's amazing.  I am going to focus this review more on the newest physical release of the film from Second Sight Films.   As always, Second Sight has done an amazing job on this new 4K release.   They spare no expense when it comes to extras and presentation. 

 The picture quality of this new 4K release is amazing. Crystal clear picture and vibrant colors.   This is definitely worth the upgrade from your old DVD or Blu-ray copies that I know we all have sitting on our shelves!  

 As great as this movie obviously is, the Special Features are what really steal the show here.  The film itself is really only a small part of this release.  There are hours and hours of special features that go really in depth into the making of this film.   Here is a list of all the Special Features included on this new release:

• New 4K restoration approved by Producer Brian Yuzna

• Presented in HDR with Dolby Vision

• Includes the Integral Version in HD

• New Audio Commentary by Eddie Falvey

• Audio Commentary with Director Stuart Gordon

• Audio Commentary with Producer Brian Yuzna and Actors Bruce Abbott, Jeffrey Combs, Barbara Crampton and Robert Sampson

• The Cosmic Horror of HP Lovecraft: a video essay by Mike Muncer

• Re-Animator at 40: conversation with Actors Jeffrey Combs and Barbara Crampton, and Producer Brian Yuzna

• Piece By Piece: Cutting Re-Animator: an interview with Editor Lee Percy

• Suzie Sorority and The Good College Boy: an interview with Actor Carolyn Purdy-Gordon

• The Horror of it All: The Legacy and Impact of Re-Animator

• Barbara Crampton in Conversation

• A Guide to Lovecraftian Cinema

• Re-Animator Resurrectus

• Interview with Director Stuart Gordon and Producer Brian Yuzna

• Interview with Writer Dennis Paoli

• Interview with Composer Richard Band

• Interview with former Fangoria Editor Tony Timpone

• Extended Scenes

• Deleted Scene

• Theatrical Trailer

• TV Spots Still

• Gallery

 The commentary tracks and new conversations with the cast and crew are extremely interesting and is worth the price of this release alone.  Do yourself a favor and pick up a copy of Second Sight Films new RE-ANIMATOR release asap!  

 Second Sight released this film in two versions, a standard 1 disk 4K version, and a limited edition 3 disk box set with a rigid slipcase with new artwork by artist Krishna Shenoi, a 120 page book with  new essays by Sean Abley, Becky Darke, Lindsay Hallam, Josh Hurtado, Michelle Kisner, Justin LaLiberty, Phil Nobile Jr and Heather Wixson, and 6 collectors arts cards.   

  At the time of this post, it looks like the Limited Edition box set is sold out everywhere I look.  If I find a site that still has them, I'll update this post!   You can still get the standard edition by clicking below. 

CLICK HERE to purchase the RE-ANIMATOR 4K UHD Standard Edition