{"id":57489,"date":"2013-10-24T06:00:17","date_gmt":"2013-10-24T13:00:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.highdefdigest.com\/blog\/?p=57489"},"modified":"2013-10-26T07:35:37","modified_gmt":"2013-10-26T14:35:37","slug":"steelbook-shining-halloween-bodysnatchers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.highdefdigest.com\/blog\/steelbook-shining-halloween-bodysnatchers\/","title":{"rendered":"Full Metal Jackets: I, Pod"},"content":{"rendered":"

With Halloween just around the corner, you may have scary movies on your mind. That’s only natural at this time of year. Unfortunately, if you happen to be a metal case collector, most of the following batch of horror-themed Blu-ray SteelBooks won’t be released until after the holiday. Will you still be in the mood for a good scare at the end of the year or the beginning of the next?
\n<\/p>\n

‘Halloween’<\/h5>\n

Available at: Amazon UK<\/a>
\nRelease date: Oct. 21, 2013
\nPrice: \u00a314.25
\nRegion code: B<\/p>\n

This one is actually available now, but if you’re importing to the United States, I can’t guarantee that it will get here in time. <\/p>\n

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The SteelBook contains the same controversial 35th Anniversary Edition<\/em> disc that was recently released on these shores. (Cinematographer Dean Cundey supervised the color transfer and claims that this is the way that ‘Halloween’ originally looked in theaters \u2013 or should have \u2013 but it’s significantly different than a previous DVD transfer that Cundey also approved.) Setting that issue aside, the SteelBook features the movie’s traditional poster art. It looks fine to me, but I think I would have preferred a new design.<\/p>\n

That being said, the American release came packaged in a thin Digibook that holds the disc in a flimsy sleeve, and its artwork isn’t much better. A lot of fans weren’t too happy with that aspect, and may prefer the SteelBook for collectible purposes. <\/p>\n

‘Invasion of the Body Snatchers’ (1978)<\/h5>\n

Available at: Amazon UK<\/a>
\nRelease date: Nov. 18, 2013
\nPrice: \u00a316.62
\nRegion code: B<\/p>\n

Jack Finney’s 1955 science fiction novel ‘The Body Snatchers’ has been adapted to film four times officially, and been ripped off countless more times. While Don Siegel’s 1956 version is the most famous (and often regarded as the best) of the movies, many fans consider Philip Kaufman’s 1978 remake as at least its equal, if not superior. <\/p>\n

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The artwork here (based on a vintage poster) more evokes the 1950s than the 1970s, but it’s very creepy and I kind of dig it. It’s certainly an order of magnitude better than the hideous cover art on the domestic Blu-ray release<\/a>. Ick.<\/p>\n

‘Nosferatu’<\/h5>\n

Available at: Amazon UK<\/a>
\nRelease date: Nov. 18, 2013
\nPrice: \u00a320.27
\nRegion code: B<\/p>\n

If you want a classic horror movie, you can’t get much more classic than F.W. Murnau’s 1922 silent vampire tale ‘Nosferatu’, an unofficial adaptation of the novel ‘Dracula’ that was almost lost to history due to a lawsuit from Bram Stoker’s estate. The film established many of the conventions that would be used in the cinematic vampire genre, and features a still-unnerving performance from star Max Schreck.<\/p>\n

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The hand-drawn design of this artwork is interesting. It’s almost childlike, and yet somehow fits the material. I like it.<\/p>\n

‘Tenebrae’<\/h5>\n

Available at: Zavvi<\/a>
\nRelease date: Dec. 16, 2013
\nPrice: \u00a314.99
\nRegion code: B<\/p>\n

Like most of Dario Argento’s movies, his 1982 giallo<\/em> slasher flick ‘Tenebrae’ is a case of style over coherency. But if you’re into his style, it has plenty to spare. The film was banned in the UK as a “Video Nasty” until 1999 due to its violence and gore, which will no doubt seem almost comically tame by modern standards. <\/p>\n

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The movie was previously released on Blu-ray in Europe with a crummy video transfer widely disparaged by fans. The SteelBook edition is said to contain a new remaster that’s much improved. I like the art design too.<\/p>\n

At the time of this writing, I’m not aware of any plans for an American Blu-ray release of ‘Tenebrae’.<\/p>\n

‘The Shining’<\/h5>\n

Available at: Zavvi<\/a>
\nRelease date: Feb. 10, 2014
\nPrice: \u00a314.99
\nRegion code: Warner Bros. titles are almost always region-free<\/p>\n

We talked about the greatness of Stanley Kubrick’s adaptation of Stephen King’s ‘The Shining’ in a recent Roundtable post<\/a>. What more needs to be said? The movie is a masterpiece of the genre. <\/p>\n

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<\/a><\/p>\n

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I find the very simple front cover art, with nothing but the “REDRUM” door pictured, intriguing in its minimalism. The back and inside have the type of images more commonly associated with the movie. I think it works.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

With Halloween just around the corner, you may have scary movies on your mind. That’s only natural at this time of year. Unfortunately, if you happen to be a metal case collector, most of the following batch of horror-themed Blu-ray SteelBooks won’t be released until after the holiday. Will you still be in the mood…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":57491,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[140],"tags":[67,2639,1574,5389,5288,1428,6908,2780],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.highdefdigest.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57489"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.highdefdigest.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.highdefdigest.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.highdefdigest.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.highdefdigest.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=57489"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/www.highdefdigest.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57489\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":57571,"href":"https:\/\/www.highdefdigest.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57489\/revisions\/57571"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.highdefdigest.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/57491"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.highdefdigest.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=57489"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.highdefdigest.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=57489"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.highdefdigest.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=57489"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}