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Vestron Video was one of the seminal video distribution labels for horror, cult, and "B" movie content on VHS throughout the 80's and into the early 90's during the earliest part of the VHS boom. They were started in 1981 by a former Time Life executive who found himself in ownership of a large library of titles from the Cannon Films library amongst other things. In 1992 after 11 years of making waves in cinema circles Vestron Video closed up shop leaving their distinct Red "V" burned into the brains of the many cult and horror aficionados who frequently rented their tapes.
In 2016 Lionsgate Films decided to go through their library of cult horror cinema, and give them long overdue releases on the Blu-ray format. They have decided to do this under the guise of the defunct, but well remembered and well loved Vestron name. Lionsgate’s new horror line has been branded the Vestron Video Collector's Series, and though not every titles that has been announced, or will be announced will have been a prior Vestron release (though some will), they will certainly fit the mold of what the company was releasing at the height of their popularity in the 1980's. For their 2 July 2018 releases they have dug into their vaults and unleashed 2 unreleased to Blu-ray films Stuart Gordon's Dagon, and Brian Yuzna's trilogy ending Beyond Re-Animator.
Beyond Re-Animator
Director– Brian Yuzna
Starring – Jeffrey Combs, Jason Barry
Country of Origin- U.S./Spain
Discs- 1
Reviewer- Scott MacDonald
When Beyond-Re-Animator was announced I was excited for a follow up film to one of my favorite horror films of all time. I also saw it as a chance to make up for what I thought of as the sub par Bride of Re-Animator (I've since come around on that one). However, when news came out about the film being CO-produced with the Sci-Fi channel (now SyFy) my enthusiasm began to wane, and I never got around to seeing it until Vestron Video put out this Blu-ray.
Beyond Re-Animator begins with the death of young Howard Philips sister at the hands of one of Herbert West' zombified creations. This time, however, West is arrested and put into prison for his crimes. Philips, however, finds a syringe of West' reagent and becomes immediately fascinated by the stuff. He researches West, and finds about his crimes and research. Philips goes into the medical profession himself, and decides to do his residency at the prison that West is detained at. Philips gets West assigned as his assistant, and the two pick up where West left on his experiments within the prison walls. However, West was never quite good at getting it right, and the dead begin returning in a much angrier state then the one they departed in.
Now, first things first, Beyond Re-Animator is probably the least of the Re-Animator trilogy, and that will probably be enough to turn first time viewers off. However, and this might be due to my tempered expectations, it is quite a decent little horror romp. Does it live up to Re-Animator? No. But, honestly, it's almost impossible to live up to a film of such classic stature.
The film uses its prison setting to create something that is tonally darker than the prior 2 films and gives the film a grimy, darker atmosphere than the prior 2 films in the series. There is comedy throughout the film, but the balance is not as strong as the prior entries in the series. Jeffrey Combs is again perfect as Herbert West, a role he seemingly can turn on at the press of a button, and series newcomer Jason Barry offers a solid turn as protégé Howard Philips. Yuzna turns in solid direction, and keeps the pace moving at a solid turn.
Vestron Video presents Beyond Re-Animator in a solid 1:78:1 1080p AVC encoded transfer. The transfer is soft throughout, but looks quite decent. Colors, especially Re-Animator green pop, and black levels are mostly solid. Detail is fine for the most part, and grain structure is organic and natural. Audio is handled by a DTS-HD MA 5.1 track in English with optional subs in Spanish and English. The track does the trick with everything coming through clearly. Extras include commentary by Yuzna, isolated score, interviews with Yuzna, Combs, an interview with Lovecraft expert ST Joshi, multiple galleries, a music video an EPK, and more.
The Film (3/5)
Audio/Video (3.5/5)
Extras (3.5/5)
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Dagon
Director– Stuart Gordon
Starring – Ezra Godden, Francisco Rabal
Country of Origin- U.S./Spain
Discs- 1
Reviewer- Scott MacDonald
I remember when Stuart Gordon's Dagon was announced in 2001, I immediately got excited. In my eyes Stuart Gordon was THEE Lovecraft director, and on top of that it was announced to be an adaptation of Lovecraft's famed Shaodow Over Innsmouth (with themes taken from the 5 page short story Dagon). When I finally saw it on VHS I thought it was the finest Lovecraft adaptation I had seen, but oddly never got a DVD of the film or had revisited it in the years since.
Dagon follows Paul Marsh a young man who finds himself suddenly rich in a recent IT boom. He is cruising off the coast of Spain with his girlfriend, his business partner, and his partner's wife, when a storm causes the boat to wreck and Paul has to seek help in a nearby community. Unfortunately, the locals are a bunch of strange fish-worshipppers who immediately kidnap his girlfriend, and keep Paul on the run for his life. Paul also finds himself confronted with a mermaid he recognizes from a frequent nightmare, bringing his dreams into a focused reality.
I'm just going to cut to the chase. When I saw Dagon for the first time I loved it, and thought it was mind-blowingly great horror. On the rewatch over 15 years later, the seams really show. It's still a solid film, and a very good horror film from director Gordon, but not as great as I remembered. Also, I don't think Stuart Gordon is capable of a bad film, so this is a thoroughly entertaining chase film in the world of Lovecraft, with some creepy visuals and decent atmospherics. Gordon manages to create a nice suspenseful vibe through much of the running time, and the community used offers a nice creepy, dirty location to set the horror in.
The cast of the film is quite solid for the most part. With Ezra Godden doing a solid turn as Paul Marsh, though you get the feeling he is standing in for an unavailable at the time Jeffrey Combs (They look terribly alike). The highlight of the cast is Francisco Rabal in what I believe was his final role. He played a homeless human who lives among the community of fish-worshippers and even with the strange material this veteran of Spanish cinema turned in a truly fantastic performance.
Vestron presents Dagon in a solid, 1:78:1 1080p transfer that will possibly prove controversial. At times the Blu-ray has solid detail, blacks, and color reproduction, at others it looks like it was taken from a dated master and DNR was applied. Audio is handled by a DTS-HD MA 5.1 track in English. Audio sounds clear and concise without issue. Extras include 2 commentary tracks, multiple new and archival interviews, galleries, trailers, and more.
The Film (3.5/5)
Audio/Video (3/5)
Extras (4/5)
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