Outbid!

Well, you can't win 'em all. An apparently "very rare" Australian VHS of Fright Night Part 2 in a coffin-shaped case just sold on eBay for $36. I knew I should have went higher, but $35 is really the tops I'll pay for a single tape. Still, it's one that got away...



On the bright side, at least I now know such awesomeness exists and I have a few other choice tapes I'm current watching.

Snagged this yesterday, the Premiere Entertainment VHS of The Nightmare Never Ends (Cataclysm) (1980):

Invitation to Hell...ish DVD

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I just received Sarcophilous Films' Invitation to Hell / The Last Night DVD Double Bill a few days back after pre-ordering weeks ago. The standard unsigned edition, #88 out of a limit of 1,000 for $25 + s/h. Crushing disappointment ensued. Despite Sarcophilous Films making the DVD out to be an A #1 effort via their pretty website, the transfers of both features are truly horrendous.

Both transfers are plagued with artifacts, combing, print damage, and worse yet The Last Night is obviously from a shitty VHS source. I'd recommend checking out the dollar store Invitation to Hell DVD versions to see if you like the film first. I honestly doubt they could look any worse than what we see here. Big fans need only apply (the extras are solid at least) to Sarcophilous's questionable maiden voyage into the land of digital.

Invitation to Hell (16:9, interlaced) (click to enlarge)

The Last Night (16:9, interlaced) (click to enlarge)

We Are The Monster Squad!

I can't really say anything new about this well-deserving cult classic. I believe it to be a better film than Dekker's previous Night of the Creeps, despite the absence of the man himself Tom Atkins. The chemistry between the child actors is excellent and the entire film doesn't look down upon its core audience of children. Assuming they're smart enough to follow the arcs and get the comedy held within. The budget limitations do show themselves a bit. The corner cutting done to push the story along is evident. Though the zeal and energy the film contains makes up for any such slight incontinence. Not to the mention the monsters just look great.

It's a damn shame Dekker has all but vanished as a director, only going on to do an episode of the Robocop series. His two film features show an eye for composition not only in the frame, but also in concept. I guess two excellent '80s chestnuts are better than nothing...still those memories of staying up late to see these reside in my most cherished of childhood.