Bride of Re-Animator / Beyond Re-Animator Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		4.5
Overall		3.5

Bride of Re-Animator / Beyond Re-Animator Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov June 21, 2018

Brian Yuzna's "Bride of Re-Animator" (1989) and "Beyond Re-Animator" (2003) arrive on Blu-ray courtesy of Australian label Umbrella Entertainment. The bonus features on the two-disc set include multiple archival audio commentaries; deleted scenes; making of featurettes; vintage publicity materials; and more. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for both films. Region-Free.

Brian Yuzna's Bride of Re-Animator (1989) has already been released on Blu-ray in North America and multiple European territories. For a complete analysis of the film, please see my colleague Jeff Kauffman's review of the Arrow Video release.

Beyond Re-Animator synopsis: The third Re-Animator film finds Dr. Herbert West (Jeffrey Combs) getting out of jail after fourteen years for inadvertently killing a young girl as a result of one of his experiments. During his time on the inside, West continued to perfect his methods on rats. When a young doctor who is aware of West's discoveries, becomes the new prison M.D., he asks West to help him on a project he is working on. Before long, dead bodies are being reanimated left and right, and the prison walls are running red with blood...!

Bride of Re-Animator / Beyond Re-Animator Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

DISC ONE - BRIDE OF RE-ANIMATOR

Included here are the Unrated and R-Rated cuts of the film.

The release is sourced from the same 2K restored master that has already been used for other European releases of Bride of Re-Animator. I think that the film now looks very good in high-definition. It has that very stable and consistent organic appearance and fluidity is lovely. Density levels are equally impressive, though I wish to mention that due to the manner in which some of the darker/indoor footage is shot some very small density fluctuations can be observed. Color grading is just as convincing -- the primaries look fresh and very healthy; the nuances are also stable and very nicely Balanced. There are no traces of digital tinkering or related anomalies. Excluding the prologue where one of the text descriptions appears bumpy, image stability is excellent. Very nice presentation, indeed. My score is 4.75/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your player regardless of your geographical location).

DISC TWO - BEYOND RE-ANIMATOR

I am unsure if this film was added only as a bonus, but the technical presentation is quite underwhelming. Indeed, it appears that some sort of denoising adjustments were made to make the film look smoother and as a result depth is rather problematic. Also, during the darker footage there is a lot of notable black crush that even further compromises depth. Fluidity also suffers because a lot of native nuances are lost. The color grading is at times adequate, but there is a lot of room for serious improvements. Image stability is good. All in all, this film needs to be properly remastered so that it has a strong organic appearance on Blu-ray. My score is 3.00/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your player regardless of your geographical location).

Bride of Re-Animator / Beyond Re-Animator Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 for Beyond of Re-Animator and English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 for Bride of Re-Animator. Optional English subtitles are provided for both films.

Both lossless track are very good, but I would say that the 2.0 track has a really nice separation. Obviously, these are different films shot under different conditions and comparing the lossless track is rather pointless, but this is something that made an impression on me while viewing the film. There are no age-related anomalies to report. ,

Bride of Re-Animator / Beyond Re-Animator Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

DISC ONE - BRIDE OF RE-ANIMATOR

• Audio Commentary One - the Unrated Cut of the film can be viewed with an optional audio commentary by Brian Yuzna. The commentary has appeared on previous home video releases of Bride of Re-Animator.

• Audio Commentary Two - the Unrated Cut of the film can be viewed with an optional audio commentary by Brian Yuzna, Jeffrey Combs, Tom Rainone, John Carl Beucher, Mike Deak, Robert Kurtzman, Howard Berger, and Screaming Mad George. The commentary has already appeared on previous home video releases of Bride of Re-Animator.

• Audio Commentary Three - the Unrated Cut of the film can be viewed with an optional audio commentary by Jeffrey Combs and Bruce Abbott. The commentary has already appeared on previous home video releases of Bride of Re-Animator.

• Brian Yuzna Remembers Bride of Re-Animator - in this archival fetaurette, director Brian Yuzna discusses the original concept for Bride of Re-Animator and some of the changes that were made after funding for the film was secured. There are additional specific comments about the shooting process as well. In English, not subtitled. (10 min).

• Splatter Masters: The Special Effects Artists of Bride of Re-Animator - in this archival featurette, Brian Yuzna discusses the type preparation efforts and were that were done by different special effects companies before production of Bride of Re-Animator started. FX artists Robert Kurtzman, John Carl Buechler, and Screaming Mad George also explain how some of the more unique creatures and suits were designed, finished, and used. In English, not subtitled. (15 min).

• Getting Ahead in Horror - this archival documentary features raw footage from the shooting of Bride of Re-Animator and plenty of technical comments from Bryan Yuzna and members of his team that address the use of special effects and the structure and appearance of various segments from the film. In English, not subtitled. (24 min).

• Behind the Scenes: Special Effects Artists - presented here is additional raw footage from the shooting of key sequences from Bride of Re-Animator as well as footage from the make-up and FX rooms. In English, not subtitled. (15 min).

• Deleted Scenes - two deleted scenes, one with commentary by Brian Yuzna. In English, not subtitled. (10 min).

• Dark Adventure Radio Presents: Herbert West: Re-Animator - a radio adaptation of Bride of Re-Animator. In English, not subtitled. (72 min).

• Trailer - vintage trailer for Bride of Re-Animator. In English, not subtitled. (2 min).

DISC TWO - BEYOND RE-ANIMATOR

• Audio Commentary with Brian Yuzna - the commentary has appeared on previous home video releases of Beyond Re-Animator.

• The Making of Beyond Re-Animator - this archival featurette takes a closer look at the production and style of Beyond Re-Animator. Included in it are clips from interviews with Brian Yuzna, and actors Elsa Pataky, Jason Barry, and Jeffrey Combs, amongst others. In English and Spanish, with optional English subtitles where necessary. (18 min)

• Dr. Re-Animator: Move Your Dead Bones - a hilarious video that was produced to promote Beyond Re-Animator. Music in English. (5 min).

• Interviews - a collection of archival video interviews in which Brian Yuzna and actors discuss their involvement with Beyond Re-Animator and the many challenges they faced while trying to revive Dr. Herbert West many years after the original film. In English and Spanish, with optional English subtitles where necessary. (19 min).
  
  1. Brian Yuzna
  2. Santiago Segura
  3. Jeffrey Combs
  4. Jason Barry
  5. Simon Andreu
  6. Elsa Pataky

• Behind the Scenes - presented here is raw footage and B-rolls from the shooting of Beyond Re-Animator and the make-up rooms, plus on-location acting instructions by Brian Yuzna. In English and Spanish, with optional English subtitles where necessary. (13 min).

• Trailer - vintage trailer for Beyond Re-Animator. In English, not subtitled. (2 min).

Bride of Re-Animator / Beyond Re-Animator Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Umbrella Entertainment's release bundles Brian Yuzna's Bride of Re-Aminator and Beyond Re-Animator and so this will likely make it quite attractive to fans of the Re-Animator films. The good news here is that Bride of Re-Animator is sourced from the lovely 2K remaster of the film that was prepared not too long ago. However, the third film is sourced from an unconvincing master with quite a few issues. The release also offers a wealth of excellent vintage bonus features. RECOMMENDED, but look for a sale.