STOCK YOUR VAULT: New Blu-rays & 4K Discs for 01/30/24!

 

Vault Master's Pick of the Week!

Hey gang! I'm back with another weekly dose of Blu-ray & 4K releases! But before I get into the good stuff, I just want to announce that Arrow Video's Limited Edition THE CONAN CHRONICLES 2-Film set has been pushed back until February 20th! However, the standalone Limited Edition releases of both CONAN THE BARBARIAN and its sequel (on both 4K & Blu-ray) are available to own right this very minute!

The final week of January 2024 was absolutely loaded with great releases from all of your favorite boutique labels - so if you are trying not to spend money on new discs, I urge you to look away now! Haha!

Severin Films kicks things into high gear with 4K releases of Frank Henenlotter's BAD BIOLOGY, NIGHTMARE,  THE PSYCHIC, and their multi-film DANZA MACABRA: VOLUME 2 boxed set which features CASTLE OF BLOOD, JEKYLL, THEY HAVE CHANGED THEIR FACE, and THE DEVIL'S LOVER!

Vinegar Syndrome's 4K UHDs of D.A.R.Y.L., eXistenZ, FATAL GAMES, and THE PROPHECY trilogy are now available, CUTTING CLASS arrives on 4K UHD for the first time thanks to MVD, and Deaf Crocodile's new restoration of the Czech film THE MYSTERIOUS CASTLE IN THE CARPATHIANS has arrived on Blu-ray disc! And, as stated above, Arrow Video's CONAN THE BARBARIAN and CONAN THE DESTROYER are now available as well, in gorgeous limited editions!

Numerous Vinegar Syndrome partner label titles hit the mainstream today as well, including Degausser Video's REDNECK ZOMBIES (one of my all-time favorite shot-on-video gems), Umbrella Entertainment's bonkers Ozploitation classic SONS OF STEEL, AGFA's TAKE IT OUT IN TRADE and THE VIOLENT YEARS, SCRAPBOOK (from Saturn's Core), and many more! I should also mention that Eli Roth's surprisingly fun THANKSGIVING is also out on Blu-ray this week, courtesy of Sony Pictures!

As you can see, there's a lot to love this week, but (seeing as how Arrow fumbled the ball) the coveted title of "Pick of the Week" goes to Kino Lorber Studio Classics' new Special Edition of THE BOOGENS! Lovingly restored in 4K, the film gets two audio commentaries, a featurette with creature creator William Munns, multiple trailers, and reversible cover art (and slipcover)! Not too shabby for what was once a forgotten film!

As always, there are numerous titles I didn't mention, so be sure to scroll down through the list below to take in the pure majesty of this week's slate of new Blu-ray and 4K discs!

NEW TO 4K ULTRA HD BLU-RAY
Bad Biology (4K UHD, 2-Disc Special Edition - Severin Films)
The Boogens (4K UHD Special Edition - Kino Lorber Studio Classics)
Conan the Barbarian (4K UHD Limited Edition - Arrow Video)
Conan the Destroyer (4K UHD Limited Edition - Arrow Video)
Cutting Class (4K UHD Collector's Edition - MVD LaserVision Collection)
Danza Macabra: Volume Two - The Italian Gothic Collection (4K UHD - Severin Films)
D.A.R.Y.L. (4K UHD - Vinegar Syndrome)
eXistenZ (4K UHD - Vinegar Syndrome)
Nightmare (4K UHD Special Edition - Severin Films)
The Prophecy I - III (4K UHD - Vinegar Syndrome)
The Psychic (4K UHD, 2-Disc Special Edition - Severin Films)
Trainspotting (4K UHD - Criterion Collection)


NEW TO BLU-RAY
The Black Room (Vinegar Syndrome)
The Boogens (Special Edition - Kino Lorber Studio Classics)
The Case Study of Vanitas: Season One, Part Two (Crunchyroll)
Conan the Barbarian (Limited Edition - Arrow Video)
Conan the Destroyer (Limited Edition - Arrow Video)
Dark Waves (Allied Vaughn)
The Dog Who Stopped the War (Canadian International Pictures)
Doll Syndrome (Rising Sun Media)
Fatal Frame (Live-Action Movie - Discotek Media)
Fatal Games (Vinegar Syndrome)
Giant Beasts of ARS: The Complete Collection (Image/Sentai)
Helld0se (Allied Vaughn)
He Walked By Night (Special Edition - Kino Lorber Studio Classics)
Joe's Apartment (Warner Archive Collection)
King on Screen (Dark Star Pictures)
Kurokami: The Animation - Complete TV Series (Discotek Media)
Loaded Guns (aka Colpo in Canna - Raro Video)
Lupin the 3rd: Sweet Lost Night (Discotek Media)
Mind Melters 22 (Acid Bath Productions)
The Mysterious Castle in the Carpathians (Deaf Crocodile)
Naruto Shippuden: Set 2 (VIZ)
Ningen Fushin: Adventurers Who Don't Believe in Humanity Will Save the World - The Complete Season (Crunchyroll)
Redneck Zombies (Degausser Video)
Rover Dangerfield (Warner Archive Collection)
Sexy Time 7 (Acid Bath Productions)
Sailor Moon SuperS: The Complete 4th Season (Warner Bros.)
Scrapbook (Saturn's Core)
Silent Night (2023 - Lionsgate)
Skateboard (Factory 25)
Sons of Steel (Umbrella Entertainment)
Surf Reality: Movie of the Month Club Collection (Art Label)
Take it Out in Trade (AGFA/Something Weird Video)
Tales to Tell in the Dark (Allied Vaughn)
Terror Zone (Allied Vaughn)
Thanksgiving (Sony Pictures)
Trainspotting (Criterion Collection)
Urusei Yatsura: TV Series Collection 4 (Discotek Media)
Vile 21 (VHSHitfest)
The Violent Years (AGFA/Something Weird Video)

On January 30th, Journey to THE MYSTERIOUS CASTLE IN THE CARPATHIANS!

DEAF CROCODILE'S NEW RESTORATION OF THE CZECH ODDITY ARRIVES ON BLU-RAY WITH SOME GREAT BONUS FEATURES!

Vinegar Syndrome's partner label Deaf Crocodile has been doing a stellar job of restoring obscure cinema from around the world (e.g. SOLOMON KING, SAMPO, et al.), and one of their latest titles is a little Czech number called THE MYSTERIOUS CASTLE IN THE CARPATHIANS. Loosely based upon a Jules Verne novel, this difficult-to-categorize film has been given a great release from the fledgling boutique label. Along with the much-touted restoration, there's also a pretty good number of bonus features included on this release! Let's pull out our collective magnifying glasses and take a closer look at this one Vault Dwellers!

Synopsis: A unique and almost indescribable mix of Gothic fiction, steampunk gadgetry (designed by Czech animation wizard Jan Švankmajer), slapstick comedy and romantic opera, director Oldřich Lipský's wonderfully bonkers delight has elements of THE FEARLESS VAMPIRE KILLERS, Terry Gilliam, Mel Brooks and "The Benny Hill Show." Based on an 1892 Jules Verne novel The Carpathian Castle (which partially inspired Bram Stoker to write Dracula), the film follows Count Teleke of Tölökö (Michal Dočolomanský) on the trail of the count's lost lover, opera singer Salsa Verde (Evelyna Steimarová) – only to discover she's been abducted by fiendish Baron Gorc of Gorceny (Miloš Kopecký), whose castle home is filled with the bizarre inventions of mad scientist Orfanik (Rudolf Hrušínský).

Littered with puns, sight gags and non-sequiturs – "Later, in Werewolfston", an invented dialect, a detached golden ear for eavesdropping, a staff topped by an enormous TV eyeball – MYSTERIOUS CASTLE was the third fantastical film from the team of director Lipský and writer Jiří Brdečka after their much-loved musical western spoof LEMONADE JOE (1966) and their detective/horror satire ADELA HAS NOT HAD SUPPER YET (1977), both major Czech cult hits. (Note that actor Miloš Kopecký and Jiří Brdečka worked on the supernatural anthology PRAGUE NIGHTS, also released by the Národní filmový archív, Deaf Crocodile, and Comeback Company.)


Disc Specs:
Not Rated | Color | 98 minutes | Region A
Video - 1080p (1.37:1)
Audio - Czech LPCM 2.0 (w/ English subtitles)


Extras:

• NEW! Restoration of the film by Craig Rogers for Deaf Crocodile!
• NEW! Video interview with Czech film critic and screenwriter Tereza Brdečková on her father, Jiří Brdečka, writer of MYSTERIOUS CASTLE. (In English)
• NEW! Essay by film historian and expert on Eastern European cinema Jonathan Owen
• NEW! Audio commentary by Tereza Brdečková and Czech film expert Irena Kovarova of Comeback Company.
• Two eerie and stunningly beautiful Jiří Brdečka animated short films:
• Vzducholoď a láska (Love and the Dirigible) (1948, 9 min.)
• Třináctá komnata prince Měděnce (Prince Copperslick aka Prince Měděnec's Thirteenth Chamber) (1980, 9 min.)
• UNIVERSUM BRDEČKA (2017, 84 min., dir. Miroslav Janek) - A feature length documentary on the life and career of filmmaker, animator, screenwriter and illustrator Jiří Brdečka, covering his childhood, his work as a screenwriter with Jiří Trnka, Karel Zeman and Oldřich Lipský, and his own acclaimed work as an animator and director. In Czech with English subtitles.

Reviews seem overly positive about the film itself (Blu-ray.com's review called it a "laugh riot"), and the restoration work done by Deaf Crocodile is reportedly top-notch, so this is looking like another win for them! For titles like this, I typically adopt a "try before you buy approach" these days (especially with the skyrocketing price boutique Blu-ray releases) but if you've been keeping pace with Deaf Crocodile up to this point, and enjoy eccentric international cinema, this will definitely be a must-own for you! THE MYSTERIOUS CASTLE IN THE CARPATHIANS arrives on Blu-ray tomorrow (January 30th!) and should cost between $21 - $30! Order a copy today from AMAZON, BULL MOOSE, DIABOLIK DVD, VINEGAR SYNDROME, or directly from DEAF CROCODILE!