Arrow Video today announced its Blu-ray and DVD releases for January, and we have one cult title and two with future cult potential.
First out the box is Forbidden Photos of a Lady Above Suspicion, a classic giallo in the melodrama tradition that features a whole raft of names familiar to anyone with a love for Italian cinema. Written by Ernesto Gastaldi (Torso), scored by Ennio Morricone (The Cat O’ Nine Tails), and starring Dagmar Lassander (Lucio Fulci’s The Black Cat), Pier Paolo Capponi (The Cat O’ Nine Tails), Simón Andreu (Death Carries a Cane) and Nieves Navarro (a.k.a. Susan Scott – Death Walks at Midnight), the film is a veritable who’s who. Lassander’s star turn as the blackmailed wife forced to give in to her blackmailer’s increasingly obscene demands is one to watch.
Next up, and still shocking from its UK premiere at Arrow Video FrightFest back in August, is Gasper Noé’s Climax. Variety called it "Fame directed by the Marquis de Sade with a Steadicam" and now you can see for yourself that French cinema’s wild child still has what it takes. The film sees a young dance troupe rehearsing for an upcoming US tour when someone spikes their drinks with LSD. What follows is an escalating nightmare as the group turns on each other in an increasingly orgiastic frenzy, complete with intense emotions and shocking actions.
Lastly comes something completely different, as Arrow Video brings Dave Made a Maze to UK Blu-ray. Imaginative and fun, the directorial debut from Bill Watterson is a homage to the fantasy adventure films of the 1980s and a cult classic in the making. It sees Dave’s girlfriend, Annie, come home one day to discover her boyfriend has built a miniature maze out of cardboard in their living room. Except this maze is bigger on the inside. And Dave is lost in it. Assembling a group of oddball friends to come with her, Annie sets off into the maze to find Dave, facing off against booby traps, giant human-eating Tiki faces and a bloodthirsty minotaur as she goes. Hilariously funny and with a big body count, this is perfect for easing those post-Christmas blues.
Forbidden Photos of a Lady Above Suspicion | Blu-ray | 14 January 2019 | £24.99
Before the influence of Dario Argento’s The Bird with the Crystal Plumage permeated every corner of the giallo genre, another strain of these distinctive Italian thrillers enjoyed considerable success. These “melodrama gialli,” heavily inspired by Clouzot’s Les diaboliques, relied less on graphic violence and high body counts and more on psychological tension.
Minou (Dagmar Lassander) leads a pampered but dull life with her frequently absent husband, Peter (Pier Paolo Capponi). One night, while out walking on the beachfront, Minou is accosted by a mysterious blackmailer (Simón Andreu) who informs her that Peter is a murderer. Driven by misplaced loyalty to her husband, Minou gives in to the blackmailer’s every perverted whim in exchange for his silence. But as the blackmailer ups the ante, demanding that she submit to his increasingly obscene demands, can Minou hold on to what little remains of her sanity?
Written by the prolific Ernesto Gastaldi, infused with a seductive score by the great Ennio Morricone and featuring a memorable turn by Nieves Navarro a.k.a. Susan Scott in the role of Minou’s best friend, The Forbidden Photos of a Lady Above Suspicion is a trippy giallo delight that brings together the talents of many of the genre’s leading lights on both sides of the camera.
Special Edition Blu-ray contents:
- Brand new 2K restoration from the original camera negative by Arrow Films
- High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation
- Original lossless mono Italian and English soundtracks
- English subtitles for the Italian soundtrack
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing for the English soundtrack
- New audio commentary by Kat Ellinger, author and editor-in-chief of Diabolique Magazine
- Private Pictures, a newly-edited documentary featuring archival interviews with actress Nieves Navarro and director Luciano Ercoli, and new interview material with writer Ernesto Gastaldi
- The Forbidden Soundtrack of the Big Three, a new appreciation of the music of Forbidden Photos and 70s Italian cult cinema by musician and soundtrack collector Lovely Jon
- The Forbidden Lady, a Q&A with actress Dagmar Lassander at the 2016 Festival of Fantastic Films
- Original Italian and English theatrical trailers
- Image gallery
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Twins of Evil
- First pressing only: Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by author and critic Michael Mackenzie
Climax | DVD and Blu-ray | 21 January 2019 | £24.99 (Blu-ray) & £15.99 (DVD)
With Climax, Gaspar Noé, enfant terrible of French cinema and director of the highly controversial Irreversible, Enter the Void and Love, returns with perhaps his most critically-acclaimed work yet.
Following a successful and visually dazzling rehearsal, a dance troupe set about celebrating with a party. But when it becomes apparent that someone has spiked the sangria, the dancers soon begin to turn on each other in an orgiastic frenzy.
Starring Sofia Boutella (The Mummy, Atomic Blonde) and featuring a pulse-pounding score by the likes of Daft Punk, Aphex Twin and Gary Numan, Gaspar Noé’s latest offering shows a director at the height of his hallucinatory filmmaking powers.
Blu-ray Special Edition contents:
- High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
- An Antidote to the Void – a brand new interview with director Gaspar Noé
- Disco Infernal – film journalist Alan Jones offers up a track-by-track appreciation of the Climax soundtrack
- Shaman of the Screen: The Films of Gaspar Noé – a brand new video essay by writer Alexandra Heller-Nicholas
- Trailer
- Reversible sleeve featuring two new artwork options
First pressing only: Collector’s booklet featuring new writing by critic Anton Bitel and a reproduction of the original press kit
DVD Special Edition features:
- Standard Definition DVD presentation
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
- An Antidote to the Void – a brand new interview with director Gaspar Noé
- Disco Infernal – film journalist Alan Jones offers up a track-by-track appreciation of the Climax soundtrack
- Shaman of the Screen: The Films of Gaspar Noé – a brand new video essay by writer Alexandra Heller-Nicholas
- Trailer
- Reversible sleeve featuring two new artwork options
Dave Made a Maze | on Blu-ray | 28 January 2019 | £24.99
Meet Dave. Dave is stuck in a maze. A maze he made. Out of cardboard. In his living room…
While his girlfriend Annie is out of town, Dave decides to build a fort in his living room from cardboard boxes – only to be become trapped in a world that he himself created. It’s up to Annie and an oddball group of friends to rescue him, avoiding booby traps, giant human-eating Tiki faces, a bloodthirsty minotaur and fatally painful puns along the way.
In a homage to fantasy adventure films from the 1980s, Dave Made a Maze features incredible and imaginative production design that literally takes you out of this world, and into the chaotic and creative mind of debut director Bill Watterson. Dubbed by Variety as a homemade Labyrinth for adults, this critically acclaimed indie offers a modern comedic edge and an even higher body count. Come and enter Dave’s maze – but be wary of finding your way back out.
Blu-ray Special Edition contents:
- High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation
- 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio and Uncompressed Stereo PCM
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
- Feature-length audio commentary with writer/director Bill Watterson and co-writer Steven Sears
- Making-of documentary
- Deleted and alternate scenes with optional audio commentary by Watterson
- The Worst Fundraising Pitch Video Ever
- Storyboard and concept galleries
- Exclusive UK theatrical teaser
- US theatrical teasers
- Original theatrical trailer
- Reversible sleeve featuring two artwork choices
- First pressing only: Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by author and critic Anton Bitel
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