RichardStanley Tagged Articles at Cinematical

Despite their self-appointed pedigree as "The Criterion of Smut," Severin Films has carved a comfortable niche for themselves over the past few years as a reliable distributor of cult classics and obscure, overlooked gems. Unquestionably, their highest-profile release to date was a domestic DVD (and later Blu-ray) for Enzo Castellari's Inglorious Bastards, which inspired Tarantino's film of the same name (albeit different spelling). But they've released and reissued a number of terrific, highly-anticipated movies, almost all of which appeal to a unique and specific audience, even if they don't always register to mainstream viewers with the same excitement or awareness.

All of which brings us to Hardware, one of the company's latest releases. Though I hadn't seen it since it was first released on home video in the early 1990s, Richard Stanley's science fiction-horror film has been celebrated over the last two-plus decades as a modest masterpiece and a true cult classic, thanks in no small part to its small budget, even smaller distribution and minuscule but fervent fan base. Unfortunately, with mainstream "cult" movies like Paranormal Activity and District 9 occupying the head-space of contemporary genre fans, not to mention a great wealth of superior films throughout movie history that explore the same ideas, Hardware is a worthy film to revisit primarily to see how well it fueled our feverish imaginations before it fell to the wayside.

Most horror geeks know Brian Yuzna as a frequent Stuart Gordon collaborator who helped to bring us Re-Animator, From Beyond, and the underrated Dolls. Younger gene freaks would also know Mr. Y from his numerous Filmax productions, which include Dagon, Rottweiler, and (of course) Beyond Re-Animator. But now, according to Big V, Brian is about to deliver a trio of 3-D horror flicks. The first will be a giant monster movie called Amphibious, the second will be Brett Leonard's Necronauts, and the third will be Richard Stanley's Cold Blooded. Now, I call this news all sorts of interesting because A) Stanley doesn't direct many films, B) Leonard has never directed a good film, and C) they're all 3-D horror movies! With monsters!

Questions: Does Danny Boyle want to direct 28 Months Later? Maybe. Will next year's Friday the 13th Part 3 DVD come in 3-D? Sure looks like it. Want to see the trailer for Adam Mason's Blood River? Sure why not. How about the first fifteen minutes of the goooory Left for Dead? Absolutely. Did you dig Shrooms? Here's the director's new one. So is Baghead a horror movie or not? Find out via DVD.

And I'd like to throw in one more plug for Maurice Devereaux's End of the Line, which is only available through Canadian retailers who stock Anchor Bay products. It's a nifty little chiller about a religious apocalypse that strikes just as some poor folks are heading home on the subway. Plus the DVD is stocked with supplemental goodies like a commentary, deleted scenes, and some footage from the flick's screening at the Fantasia Film Festival.

So between My Bloody Valentine, Piranha, and Scar (remember that one?) all on the way and all in 3-D -- and with all these also on the way -- I ask you this: Is 3-D here to stay this time? The first 3-D boom was well before my time, but I actually lived through the era of Amityville 3-D, Jaws 3-D, and (dear lord) Treasure of the Four Crowns. So I'm cautious.