Arrow Video has announced the June release of hack 'n' slash favourite Madman and cult black comedy gem Withnail & I on 4K UHD, Hitchcokian thriller Mute Witness on 4K UHD and Blu-ray and spellbinding drama Nightsiren on Blu-ray.
MADMAN (USA 1982)
Limited Edition 4K UHD | 24 June 2024 | £29.99
Gather around the campfire, and hear the tale of Madman Marz – an ill-tempered farmer who, one dark night, chopped up his wife and two children into pieces. When the locals learned of his heinous crimes, they exacted revenge – sinking an axe into his head and hanging him from a nearby tree. But the next day, Marz's body was gone...
Thus the camp counsellor finishes his tale, closing with the warning never to say Marz's name above a whisper, lest the hideously-deformed farmer comes looking for them. Naturally, the first thing that one of the young campers does is calls out Marz's name – precipitating a terrifying night of murder, mayhem and sexy Jacuzzi vignettes!
Inspired by the same Cropsey urban legend which informed 1981's The Burning and starring Dawn of the Dead's Gaylen Ross (appearing under the pseudonym 'Alexis Dubin'), Madman stands as one of the finest offerings from the golden age of hack 'n' slash.
LIMITED EDITION 4K ULTRA HD CONTENTS:
- 4K transfer of the film from the original camera negative
- 4K (2160p) Ultra HD Blu-ray presentation in High Dynamic Range
- Original uncompressed mono audio
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
- Audio commentary with director Joe Giannone, stars Paul Ehlers and Tony Fish and producer Gary Sales
- Audio commentary with The Hysteria Continues
- UK-exclusive introduction by Sales and Ehlers
- I'm Not A Screamer, a 2022 interview with star Gaylen Ross
- The Legend Still Lives! Thirty Years of Madman – a feature-length retrospective documentary on the slasher classic including interviews with various cast and crew
- Madman: Alive at 35 – Sales, Ehlers and star Tom Candela look back at the making of Madman, 35 years after it was filmed
- The Early Career of Gary Sales – the Madman producer discusses his career in the film industry
- Convention interviews with Sales and Ehlers
- Music Inspired by Madman – a selection of songs inspired by the movie, including the track 'Escape From Hellview' from former CKY frontman Deron Miller
- In Memoriam – producer Sales pays tribute to the some of the film's late cast and crew, including director Giannone and actor Tony Fish
- Original theatrical trailer
- TV spots
- Stills & artwork gallery with commentary by Sales
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Matthew Griffin
- Collector's booklet featuring writing on the film by critic James Oliver, illustrated with original archive stills and posters
WITHNAIL & I (UK 1987)
Limited Edition 4K UHD | 24 June 2024 | £34.99
Camden Town, the arse-end of the sixties. Two struggling, unemployed actors decide some respite is in order and so depart their miserable flat for a week in the Lake District – one that will involve rain, booze, minimal supplies, a randy bull and an even randier Uncle Monty.
Based on the real-life experiences of former actor turned writer/director Bruce Robinson, Withnail & I has become one of British cinema's most fondly remembered comedies. A cult film in the truest sense that has also become a classic.
Perfectly cast – with career-defining roles for Richard E. Grant, Paul McGann, Richard Griffiths and Ralph Brown – and crammed with irresistibly quotable dialogue, Withnail & I is a sheer delight, even on the umpteenth viewing.
LIMITED EDITION 4K ULTRA HD LIMITED EDITION CONTENTS:
- Brand new 4K restoration from the original negative by Arrow Films, supervised and approved by director of photography Peter Hannan
- 4K (2160p) Ultra HD Blu-ray presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible)
- Original lossless mono soundtrack
- Optional lossless 5.1 soundtrack
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing
- Audio commentary by writer-director Bruce Robinson
- Audio commentary by critic and writer Kevin Jackson, author of the BFI Modern Classic on Withnail & I
- All four original Withnail Weekend documentaries, first screened on Channel 4 in 1999, including The Peculiar Memories of Bruce Robinson, which looks at the director's career, Withnail & Us, which focuses on the film's making, and two shorter documentaries, I Demand to Have Some Booze and Withnail on the Pier
- Interview with production designer Michael Pickwoad
- An appreciation of Withnail & I by Sam Bain, co-creator of Peep Show and Fresh Meat
- Archival interview with Bruce Robinson
- Theatrical trailer
- Limited edition packaging with reversible sleeve featuring two choices of original artwork
- Limited edition perfect bound book featuring writing on the film by Vic Pratt, Anthony Nield, Martin Jones, Neil Mitchell and Mike Sutton
MUTE WITNESS (UK/Russia/Germany 1995)
Limited Edition 4K UHD | Limited Edition Blu-ray | 24 June 2024 | £29.99
Director Anthony Waller (The Piper, An American Werewolf in Paris) combines cat-and-mouse suspense with classic intrigue in Mute Witness, an updated take on the Hitchcockian thriller in which the only witness to a brutal crime can neither speak nor cry out in terror.
Billy Hughes (Marina Sudina) is a mute special effects artist working on a low budget American slasher movie being shot in Russia. Accidentally locked in the studio late one night, she stumbles upon two men shooting what appears to be a snuff film. Having borne witness to their victim's final moments, Billy desperately flees – but this is only the start of a protracted night of terror, drawing her and her friends into a tangled web of intrigue, involving the KGB, the Moscow police… and a mysterious crime kingpin known as "The Reaper".
Filmed on location in Moscow and co-starring Fay Ripley (Mary Shelley's Frankenstein) and Evan Richards (Society), Mute Witness is an unpredictable, nerve-shreddingly tense viewing experience. Now fully restored in 4K and presented alongside a host of new and recently unearthed bonus materials, there has never been a better opportunity to discover – or rediscover – this gem of 90s thriller cinema.
LIMITED EDITION 4K ULTRA HD AND LIMITED EDITION BLU-RAY CONTENTS:
- 4K restoration approved by director Anthony Waller
- 4K (2160p) Ultra HD Blu-ray presentation in HDR10 (UHD only)
- High Definition (1080p) Blu-ray presentation (Blu-ray only)
- Restored original lossless stereo soundtrack
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
- Brand new audio commentary by writer/director Anthony Waller
- Brand new audio commentary with production designer Matthias Kammermeier and composer Wilbert Hirsch, moderated by critic Lee Gambin
- The Silent Death, brand new visual essay by author and critic Alexandra Heller-Nicholas, examining Mute Witness and its relationship with snuff films
- The Wizard Behind the Curtain, brand new visual essay by author and critic Chris Alexander, exploring the phenomenon of the film-within-a-film
- Original "Snuff Movie" presentation, produced to generate interest from investors and distributors, featuring interviews with Anthony Waller and members of the creative team
- Original location scouting footage
- Original footage with Alec Guinness, filmed a decade prior to the rest of Mute Witness
- Teaser trailer
- Trailer
- Image gallery
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Adam Rabalais
- Double-sided foldout poster featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Adam Rabalais
- Illustrated collector's booklet featuring new writing on the film by Michelle Kisner
NIGHTSIREN [SVETLONOC] (Slovakia/Czech Republic 2022)
Limited Edition Blu-ray | 3 June 2024 | £24.99
Following her 2017 debut feature Filthy, writer and director Tereza Nvotová returns with Nightsiren, a spellbinding contemporary drama that expertly blends psychological and supernatural horror to explore the intersections of misogyny and religious zealotry.
In the wake of a tragic past, Šarlota (Natália Germáni) returns to her mountainous hometown after years of absence. After befriending Mira (Eva Mores), a spirited young herbalist, Šarlota stumbles upon the forgotten tale of an ancient witch and a wild child. Together, they embark on a quest to unearth the village's buried secrets. But as Šarlota delves deeper into the mysteries, she becomes entangled in a web of ancient legends turned reality. Accused of witchcraft and murder by fearful villagers, she must explore the darkness at the heart of the town to clear her name and confront the shadows of her past.
Tereza Nvotová has created a captivating cinematic experience which has wowed audiences and critics alike on the international festival circuit, including Locarno where it won the Golden Leopard – Filmmakers of the Present award. Beguiling and atmospheric, Nightsiren is a superb effort from one of the most exciting new voices in cinema.
LIMITED EDITION BLU-RAY CONTENTS:
- High Definition (1080p) Blu-ray presentation
- Original stereo audio and 5.1 surround audio
- Optional English subtitles
- New audio commentary by film critic Kat Ellinger
- Witches and Sisterhood, a brand new video essay on witches and the idea of "sisterhood" as it pertains to both biological bonds and feminist collectivity by film critic and author Alexandra Heller-Nicholas
- Taboo, a brand new video essay exploring the relationship of femininity, the unknown and sexuality in Nightsiren by film critic and festival programmer Justine Smith
- Theatrical trailer
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Beth Morris
- Double-sided foldout poster featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Beth Morris
- Illustrated collector's booklet featuring new writing on the film by Anton Bitel, Cerise Howard and Alexandra West
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