4K ULTRA HD Review: THE CONVENT (2000)

 

THE CONVENT 

Directed by:  Mike Mendez

Distributed by:  Synapse Films / MVD

  I am not sure how this film avoided my radar, but not only have I never seen THE CONVENT, I have never even heard of it!   I find this very odd, as it was so much fun!   How did I miss this one all these years!!   Here is the basic plot synopsis from the Synapse Films website:

In 1960, a young woman named Christine enters St. Francis Boarding School for Girls and lays waste to the resident nuns. Four decades later, a group of college students head to the long-abandoned building late one night to tag it with their fraternity letters, little knowing that rumors of the place being haunted are terrifyingly true. Stir in a couple of disapproving cops and a band of unlikely Satanists, and the table is set for a feast of demonic infestation and bloodshed that only the grown-up Christine (Adrienne Barbeau, THE FOG, SWAMP THING) can possibly stop.

  

 This film had me hooked from the very beginning.  In fact, this might be one of the coolest movie openings of all time.  The movie shows us young  Christine going into a convent and wreaking havoc, shooting up the place, and burning the priest and nuns.  This is done in slow motion, to the tune of "You Don't Own Me" by Lesley Gore.  This is such an effective opening, and the music is perfect for this opening scene.   

  We don't really know why Christine is doing this, but later in the film we get the full story of why she did it from the adult Christine, played by horror legend Adrienne Barbeau.   Speaking of horror royalty, we also get to see the great Bill Moseley in this film, although I was not a fan of his part.  He plays a cop alongside an interesting casting choice in rapper Coolio.  They play a very comedic pair, which was very reminiscent of the horribly out of place cops in THE LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT.  The comic relief was not needed in that film, and it wasn't needed here either. 

  

  This film reminded me of movies like, DEMONS, and NIGHT OF THE DEMONS.  If you liked those films, you will love this one.   Although made in 2000, it had more of a feel of a 80's or 90's film, and that is a compliment for sure!    The film was full of some great practical effects, and the makeup effects on the main demon were amazing, utilizing some sort of glowing make up to make it look like her veins were glowing a cool blue color.  Very well done!  

 While I never saw an older version to compare it to, I have to say that his 4K UHD version looks amazing.   Very vibrant colors and super sharp picture!  If you have an older DVD of this film, you'll definitely want to do yourself a favor and make an upgrade to the 4K Ultra HD disc!

  THE CONVENT is available now from Synapse Films and MVD Entertainment and contains the following special features:

• *Limited Edition Combo (4K UHD + Blu-ray) Release of only 4000 units total
• *Limited Edition Slipcover only on this combo release
• *4K remaster of the uncut version supervised and approved by director, Mike Mendez
• *Mastered in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible)
• *5.1 stereo surround mix from the original 16-track audio masters
• *Cast and crew audio commentary, featuring director Mike Mendez
• *“Lords of Hell” audio commentary featuring Saul and Dickie-Boy
• *Video tour of both THE CONVENT and KILLERS film locations
• *Vintage “Making of” featurette
• *Vintage original studio Electronic Press Kit (EPK)
• *“It’s Always Something with a Virgin” Liner notes booklet from Corey Danna
• *Deleted scene
• *Gore outtakes
• *Still gallery
• *Promotional trailers
• *Reversible cover art

CLICK HERE to watch the trailer

CLICK HERE to purchase the Blu-ray

CLICK HERE to purchase the 4K UHD

Check out the crazy Red Band teaser trailer for Bill Moseley's upcoming film, CREPITUS!

  Sub-genre's of horror films seem to come in waves....it was vampire movies for a while, then there was a zombie craze, and now the latest fad seems to be the killer clown film.   While clowns have always had a part in horror films over the years   (KILLER CLOWNS FROM OUTER SPACE, IT, AMUSEMENT, etc), lately there has been a steady flow of clown films, probably ushered in by the Eli Roth produced film, simply titled CLOWN.  That film had a bunch of publicity around it when it came out which got the ball rolling.

  Lately we have had AMERICAN HORROR STORY: FREAKSHOW, the KILLJOY films, 100 TEARS, ALL HALLOWS EVE 1 & 2, THE LAST CIRCUS, and Rob Zombie's 31 just to name a few.   More are on the horizon as well, such as Billy Pon's CIRCUS OF THE DEAD, which could possibly end up being the best of them all! 

  A new clown film has made a recent appearance, and from the looks of the trailer, this one is going to be a blast!   It's called CREPITUS, and it stars genre fave, Bill Moseley  as the title character.   Here is the basic plot from the film's imdb page:

Seventeen year old Elizabeth and her younger sister Sam are thrust into circumstances more terrifying than life with their abusive, drunken mother when they are forced to move into their deceased Grandfather's house. Frightened beyond belief, they are forced to learn horrible things about their family history. Never mind the ghosts in the house, there is something far worse that takes an interest in them ... a cannibalistic clown named Crepitus.

  Imdb.com lists the release date as October 15th of this year, but I am not sure if that is a real date or not.  Stay tuned here or keep up with the official facebook page for more details and release info!


CLICK HERE to watch the Red Band Trailer
CLICK HERE to vist the CREPITUS Facebook page
CLICK HERE to visit the film's official website

Civil War era zombies run amok in the new film, EXIT HUMANITY!

  
 Check out the trailer for what looks to be another great zombie film, EXIT HUMANITY.   The film was written and directed by John Geddes and starts genre vet Bill Moseley.
  Here is the plot synopsis courtesy of the film's official website:

EXIT HUMANITY is a story told through the written and illustrated journal of Edward Young as he battles his way through an unexplainable outbreak of the walking dead a decade after the American Civil War. After returning home from a hunting trip to find a horrific re-animation of his wife Julia, and that their son Adam has disappeared, Edward starts to record his experiences with the walking dead as well as the unexplainable outbreak that has torn his family apart, and threatens all of mankind. Throughout his harrowing journey Edward finds friendship, guidance and love amongst chaos and despair, when all else seems to be lost in a world robbed of its humanity.

EXIT HUMANITY is set for release on DVD on June 19th of this year.
 
CLICK HERE to watch the trailer
CLICK HERE to visit the film's official website

DVD Review: DEAD AIR (2009)

When I first saw the cover for DEAD AIR, I immediately thought of my buddy Scott’s review of Pontypool, from back in April. The covers are similar, as are the write-ups about each movie on the backs of the cases. This instantly put me on guard with an air of skepticism; Pontypool was released a full year before Dead Air. Could director Corbin Bernsen have ripped off a movie idea?
Thankfully, he did not…well, very much, anyway. The overall premise is similar, but these two movies are drastically different in execution. Likewise, both are entertaining and definite ‘musts’ for fans of the zombie genre.
Here is the basic plot courtesy of imdb.com:

“Logan Burnhardt is the ego-king of the airwaves, but his unflappable persona is put to the test when a terrorist bio-attack unleashes a plague of flesh-ripping maniacs on Los Angeles.”

The film is released by Anthem Pictures and the main star of the film is the great Bill Moseley, who I got to meet last month at the Texas Frightmare Weekend. Moseley is most renowned for his roles as the sadistic Otis from House of 1000 Corpses and The Devil’s Rejects, and the freakish Chop-Top Sawyer from The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2. The character of Burnhardt is a long trek away from either of these two previous horror icons, taking on a more heroic role in the movie as opposed to a butchering one.

Dead Air has a well thought out plot that includes an insightful look into the concept of bio-terrorism and how it could very well topple the United States as a super-power. The acting is excellent, with Moseley and leading-lady Patricia Tallman playing off of each other perfectly. Tallman is certainly no stranger to horror either, with titles like MONKEY SHINES, the 1990 remake of NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, and ARMY OF DARKNESS on her resume (yes, folks, she was the possessed witch in Army of Darkness!).

The description of the plot above is very brief and does not delve very deeply into the underlying themes of the film, which include loyalty, patriotism, and duty. But those themes do nothing to bog down the film in any way. The film flows along at an even pace, building suspense and tension as it goes.

The special effects are also well done, although my only complaint about this film is that there are only a couple of good gore shots. And when I say a couple, I mean literally, there are only two. How can you have a zombie flick without gore? It’s just unheard of!

But Dead Air is definitely entertaining and fun to watch. The characters are likable and believable and the production value is top-notch. The film does not really break new ground as far as zombie lore and the genre goes, but it is definitely worth watching.

CLICK HERE to watch the trailer for DEAD AIR

CLICK HERE to purchase a DVD of DEAD AIR or any other of the great films from Anthem Pictures

CLICK HERE to visit the official website of Anthem Pictures