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Alien invasions, indie horror and true crime on Arrow Blu-ray in October

1 October 2020

Arrow Video and Arrow Academy light up the darkening nights in October with the release of a delightfully droll French comedy drama classic, a pair of fascinating and fearsome horror films from a new US talent, a groundbreaking sci-fi from Japan, and the Blu-ray debut of a much sought-after, chilling true crime chiller. This scintillating selection of films include English-language Blu-ray debuts, high definition transfers, in-depth documentaries and video essays, brand new commentaries, little seen short films given the HD treatment, and lavish booklets with incisive new writing on the films, beautiful new artwork, reversible sleeves and collectable O-cards.

On 5 October, Arrow Academy presents Little Nothings, the debut feature of Cédric Klapisch, a lacerating critique of modern management techniques and globalisation, that marked the emergence of a major new talent in French Cinema. Also on 5 October limited edition of The Deeper You Dig, from the prodigiously talented filmmaking Adams Family. Next in October from Arrow Video comes Koji Shima’s Warning From Space, the first Japanese science fiction film to be made in colour. Finally there is the Blu-ray debut of 1989’s Cold Light of Day, offering a grim and gritty retelling of the story of Dennis Nilsen.

 

Little Nothings Blu-ray cover art

LITTLE NOTHINGS [RIENS DU TOUT] (1992) | Blu-ray | 5 October 2020 | £24.99

The debut feature of Cédric Klapisch, this lacerating critique of modern management techniques and globalisation marked the emergence of a major new talent in French Cinema.

Parisian department store Les Grandes Galeries is failing. In a last-ditch effort to save the 100-year-old store, the board hires Mr. Lepetit (Fabrice Luchini) and gives him one year to turn things around. He begins with the staff, a microcosm of French society, who must learn to believe in themselves and each other.

At once warmly human and bitingly satirical, Little Nothings was an early entry in the kind of comedy-drama mix that French cinema excels at, and Klapisch would prove himself a master of. Available on home video for the first time in English speaking countries.

SPECIAL EDITION BLU-RAY CONTENTS:

  • High definition digital transfer
  • Original uncompressed mono audio 
  • Newly translated optional English subtitles 
  • Leçon de cinéma de Cédric Klapisch et Jackie Berroyer – a 52-minute documentary on the filmmakers at work 
  • Ce qui me meut [What Moves Me] (1986) – a 24-minute short film by Cédric Klapisch 
  • Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Scott Saslow 
  • FIRST PRESSING ONLY: Collector's booklet featuring new writing by Ginette Vincendeau

 

The Deeper You Dig Limited Edition Blu-ray exploded pack shot

THE DEEPER YOU DIG (2019) | Limited Edition Blu-ray | 5 October 2020 | £24.99

Themes of family, loss and survival intersect on the thin line that separates the living from the dead in The Deeper You Dig, the latest feature written, directed by and starring filmmaking family the Adams Family (Knuckle Jack, Rumblestrips) – described as “a force to be reckoned with” (Dread Central) and “the multi-hyphenates other multi-hyphenates hope to be when they grow up” (Nightmare on Film Street).

Bogus tarot card reader Ivy (Toby Poser) and her teenage daughter Echo (Zelda Adams) are an unconventional but loving mother/daughter team. But when reclusive Kurt (John Adams) moves in down the road, a tragic accident results in Echo’s murder, causing three lives to collide in mysterious and wicked ways. Kurt believes he can hide his secret beneath the earth – but Echo, refusing to accept death, burrows into his head until he can feel her in his bones. As she haunts his every move, trying to reach her mother from beyond, Ivy must dig deep to see the signs and prove that love won’t stay buried.

A dark, unsettling meditation on grief, survival and the brittle barrier that separates the living from the dead, this limited double-disc edition pairs The Deeper You Dig with John Adams’ earlier feature The Hatred, making for a compelling double bill of original, independent horror.

LIMITED EDITION BLU-RAY CONTENTS:

  • Exclusive two-disc set containing The Deeper You Dig (2019) and The Hatred (2018) 
  • Reversible sleeve featuring two exclusive choices of artwork 
  • Double-sided fold-out poster
  • Limited edition illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing by Neil Mitchell

DISC ONE – THE DEEPER YOU DIG:

  • High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation
  • Original lossless PCM 2.0 stereo soundtrack
  • Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
  • Audio commentary by writers/directors/stars Toby Poser and John Adams
  • At Home with the Adams Family, an exclusive, in-depth interview with the trio of filmmakers responsible for The Deeper You Dig
  • It’s in the Blood: The Family in the Horror Genre, an exclusive visual essay by critic Anton Bitel exploring the theme of family in The Deeper You Dig and the Adams Family’s broader filmography
  • Special effects breakdown with commentary by Trey Lindsay
  • FrightFest TV interview with the Adams Family
  • Hellbender music videos
  • Theatrical trailer
  • Image gallery

DISC TWO – THE HATRED:

  • High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation
  • Original lossless PCM 2.0 stereo soundtrack
  • Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
  • Kid Kalifornia music videos

 

Warning From Space Blu-ray cover art

WARNING FROM SPACE [UCHŪJIN TŌKYŌ NI ARAWARU] (1956) | Blu-ray | 12 October 2020 | £24.99

The first Japanese science fiction film to be made in colour, Koji Shima’s Warning From Space features eye-popping special effects from the same team at Daiei Studios that would bring Gamera to life a decade later.

As Japan is rocked by mysterious sightings of UFOs over Tokyo and large one-eyed aliens attempting contact, scientists collaborate to investigate the unexpected rise in extraterrestrial activity. Unbeknownst to them, one of the aliens has already assumed human form and is about to deliver a very important message… that could be humanity’s last hope for survival.

With a witty script by Hideo Oguni (screenwriter of several Akira Kurosawa classics including Seven Samurai) and iconic starfish-like aliens designed by avant-garde artist Taro Okamoto, the original Japanese version of Warning From Space finally makes its official English-language video debut.

SPECIAL EDITION BLU-RAY CONTENTS:

  • High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation
  • Original uncompressed Japanese mono audio
  • Optional newly translated English subtitles 
  • rand new commentary by Stuart Galbraith IV, author of Monsters Are Attacking Tokyo!
  • First-ever HD transfer of the American release version of the film, including a newly restored English dub track
  • Theatrical trailers
  • Image galleries
  • Reversible sleeve featuring newly commissioned artwork by Matt Griffin
  • FIRST PRESSING ONLY: Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring an essay on artist Taro Okamoto by Japanese art historian Nick West, and an essay on the production of the American edit of the film by David Cairns

 

Cold Light of Day Blu-ray cover art

COLD LIGHT OF DAY (1989) | Limited Edition Blu-ray | 26 October 2020 | £24.99

February, 1983. Detectives are called to a residential address in the London suburbs following reports that the drains have been clogged by human remains. One of the property’s residents, Dennis Nilsen – a mild-mannered and unassuming civil servant – is brought in for questioning, leading to the discovery of one of the most shocking and disturbing cases of serial murder ever to rock Britain. 

Offering a grim and gritty retelling of the story of “Des” Nilsen, often dubbed the “British Jeffery Dahmer”, 1989’s Cold Light of Day stars Bob Flag (the face of Big Brother in Michael Radford’s 1984) as Nilsen-cipher Jorden March, delivering one of the most chilling and credible portrayals of a serial killer ever committed to screen.

From writer-director Fhiona-Louise, Cold Light of Day – which picked up the UCCA Venticittà Award at the 1990 Venice International Film Festival – is a hugely underseen and underrated British effort that can stand proudly alongside the likes of Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer as one of the most unflinching true-crime films of all time.

LIMITED EDITION BLU-RAY CONTENTS:

  • Limited Edition of 2000 units
  • Brand new 2K restoration from the original 16mm camera negative approved by director Fhiona-Louise
  • Original uncompressed mono audio
  • Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
  • Brand new audio commentary with writer/director Fhiona-Louise
  • Brand new audio commentary with film historians/writers Dean Brandum and Andrew Nette
  • Newly-filmed interview with actor Martin Byrne-Quinn
  • Newly-filmed interview with actor Steve Munroe
  • Original Cold Light of Day promo film made to raise financing for the feature
  • Re-release trailer
  • Two short films starring Cold Light of Day director Fhiona-Louise and photographed by Star Wars DP David Tattershall, newly restored in HD: Metropolis Apocalypse (1988, 11 mins) and Sleepwalker (1993, 2 mins)
  • Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly-commissioned artwork by Gilles Vranckx
  • Limited Edition Die-cut O-card
  • Limited Edition collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by Jo Botting and a look at how the press reported Dennis Nilsen’s real-life crimes by Jeff Billington