• Fango got the scoop on the DVD dates for several horror films coming from IFC Films in the next several months. All of these titles either have played or can be seen now via video-on-demand, and they’ll be Blockbuster exclusives before being made available for general retail sales.
• Magnolia Home Entertainment has the Thai supernatural actioner DEMON WARRIORS coming Aug. 4 under the Magnet Releasing banner. Originally titled OPAPATIKA and produced by Pracha Pinkaew (the man behind such Tony Jaa actionfests as ONG-BAK and TOM YUM GOONG/THE PROTECTOR, it’s about a detective who commits suicide in order to enter a netherworld where he’ll gain the abilities necessary to fight demons—but has to sacrifice one of his senses for each battle. The movie will be presented in widescreen with Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtracks in both Thai and English, along with:
• Audio commentary
• Deleted scenes
• Behind-the-scenes footage
On July 28, Magnolia brings the outrageous Japanese monster mash BIG MAN JAPAN to DVD. Presented in anamorphic widescreen, the movie will be accompanied by:
• Audio commentary by director/co-writer/star Hitoshi Matsumoto
• Behind-the-scenes footage
• Deleted scenes
• Photo gallery
Retail price for DEMON and BIG MAN is $26.98 each.
• Cover art recently surfaced for a pair of Sony Pictures Home Entertainment releases. Jaume Balagueró and Paco Plaza’s [REC] comes out July 14 with a making-of piece, and the direct-to-DVD sequel MESSENGERS 2: THE SCARECROW arrives July 21 with commentary by director Martin Barnewitz and scripter Todd Farmer.
• Genius Products has another pair of Sci Fi Channel flicks flying onto disc later this year as part of its Maneater Series. First up is WYVERN, from director Steven R. Monroe and featuring Nick Chinlund, Erin Karpluk and Barry Corbin taking on the titular beast (a fancy term for a dragon released from its burial under ice by global warming); it streets Aug. 18. Not long after, September 8 sees the RISE OF THE GARGOYLES, helmed by VIPERS’ Bill Corcoran and set in Paris, where the winged beasts terrorize Eric Balfour, Nick Mancuso and Tanya Clarke, among others. Both movies will be presented in widescreen with 5.1 audio and no significant special features; retail price is $14.95 each. Fango has also learned that Genius’ release of THE CHAOS EXPERIMENT (see feature here), out Aug. 4, will include a 16x9-enhanced 2.35:1 transfer with Dolby Digital 5.1 sound, but no bonus features. Retail price for that one is $19.95.
• Lionsgate Home Entertainment has announced a couple more indie horror flicks for summer release. Out Aug. 4 is writer/director D.J. Evans’ CRAVINGS, a British film originally titled DADDY’S GIRL and starring DONKEY PUNCH’s Jaime Winstone as Nina, a vampiric teenager, and Richard Harrington as a psychiatrist trying to treat her. It’ll be presented in anamorphic widescreen with Dolby Digital 5.1 sound and no significant extras. Same goes for LAST RESORT, out Aug. 18, which is not the same movie as Lionsgate’s upcoming KILL THEORY (which was originally lensed under the RESORT title). This one’s set in the tropics, where a quintet of young women are robbed and assaulted by their tour guide and wind up at an abandoned and haunted resort. Retail price is $26.98 for both of those.
• Warner Home Video will issue the first season of J.J. Abrams, Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci’s paranormal series FRINGE in seven-DVD and five-Blu-ray sets Sept. 8. The 20 episodes, starring Anna Torv, Joshua Jackson and John Noble, will be presented in 16x9-enhanced fullscreen with Dolby Surround 5.1 audio, plus over six hours of bonus features. Appearing on both formats will be:
• Three writer/producer audio commentaries by Abrams, Kurtzman, Roberto and J.R. Orci, David Goodman, Bryan Burk, Akiva Goldsman and Jeff Pinkner
• Evolution: The Genesis of FRINGE featurette
• Behind the Real Science of FRINGE featurette
• A Massive Undertaking: The Making of FRINGE featurettes on select episodes
• The Casting of FRINGE featurette
• FRINGE Visual Effects featurette
• Dissected Files: Unaired scenes
• Unusual Side Effects: Gag reel
• Deciphering the Scene
• Roberto Orci Production Diary
• Gene the Cow montage
Unique to the Blu-ray edition will be:
• FRINGE Pattern Analysis: a closer look at six select scenes
• BD-Live enabled features including Media Center, My Commentary and audio commentary on the finale episode.
Retail price is $59.98 for the DVDs, $79.98 for the Blu-rays.
• Triumphant Entertainment and Gutter Films will release Craig McMahon’s indie chiller THE CRYPT (which we previously told you about here) via E1 Entertainment Aug. 11, following select theatrical bookings June 25. The disc will present the movie in widescreen with Dolby Digital 5.1 sound, accompanied by:
• Audio commentary by writer/director/producer McMahon
• Interviews
• Deleted scenes
