7.6 | / 10 |
Users | 4.1 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
Five creepy tales are strung together by a framing story involving a young boy being punished by his father for reading the gruesome, titular comic book. "Father's Day" tells the tale of a family patriarch exacting beyond-the-grave revenge on the daughter who murdered him. In "The Lonesome Death of Jordy Verrill," a Maine hayseed is overtaken by a meteor-based plant growth. A cuckolded husband exacts watery revenge on his cheating wife and her lover in "Something to Tide You Over." A hairy beast in a box is used for nefarious purposes at a university in "The Crate." Finally, in "They're Creeping Up on You," a wealthy, arrogant New Yorker with a fear of germs has a disturbing run-in with cockroaches during a blackout.
Starring: Hal Holbrook, Adrienne Barbeau, Fritz Weaver, Leslie Nielsen, Carrie NyeHorror | 100% |
Thriller | 18% |
Dark humor | 12% |
Comic book | Insignificant |
Video codec: VC-1
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: Dolby TrueHD 2.0
English SDH, French
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region free
Movie | 3.5 | |
Video | 3.5 | |
Audio | 3.0 | |
Extras | 0.5 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
In recent years, it seems even renowned horror directors of the past three decades can’t generate an ounce of creativity. Perhaps it’s a direct result of the desensitization of youth, or the drying well of ingeniuty, but John Carpenter, George Romero, Tobe Hooper and even Wes Craven have been surprisingly absent from the horror genre. I’m not saying there’s zero hope for a new batch of talent to take the mantle and run, but merely pointing out an observation that horror films have taken a step in the wrong direction since the invention of the teen slasher. With that in mind, I’ve been given the opportunity to revisit a true horror classic, appropriately named Creepshow. Originally conceived as a throwback to the horror comic books of their youth, Stephen King and George Romero collaborated on the film, presenting five short stories that range from ghastly to comical. To this day, I remember many sleepless nights in my youth that were directly related to a particular creature in a crate (courtesy of this film), but I’ll save that embarassing discussion for another time.
Can you tell that's Stephen King's real-life son?
Presented in 1080p utilizing the VC-1 codec (at an average bitrate of 25Mbps) , Creepshow looks surprisingly good considering it's 27 year vintage. Several years ago, I owned the DVD copy released a full decade ago, and wish I had it on hand to draw comparisons, but I'm positive this is a noticeable upgrade over that aging relic. From a detail standpoint, the level of clarity is good, but rarely fantastic. There's seems to be a subtle difference in fine object detail between the five segments, with the tale of Jordy Verrill fairing the worst. I'd wager the occasional haziness that creeps in is a product of the source material, since the sequences that appear less distinct are typically distance shots. As far as the coloring in the film, skin tones appear natural, and the animated segments look far brighter than I remembered on previous viewings, demonstrating a greater level of accuracy in the coloring on this release. Along the same lines, I felt black levels were appropriately deep, and contrast is spot on from start to finish. I looked as closely as possible for aliasing, DNR, or the presence of any digital anomalies, but never detected even a hint of transfer tampering. In closing, I should mention there's a degree of fine grain during some scenes and the occasional speck on the print, but it never progressed to a level I'd consider distracting.
The default audio offering on the disc (provided you have equipment that can handle lossless audio) is a Dolby TrueHD 2.0 track. There's not a whole lot to comment on from an audio basis, since there's zero surround differentiation in the dated mix. After all, you can't exactly turn apples into oranges, and short of a major ground-up remastering, this is likely the best we're going to get out of Creepshow. Digging into the positives, the clarity and volume balance between the various elements in the track are all highly proficient, allowing the viewer the opportunity to sit back and soak up every blood-curdling scream without worrying about adjusting the volume or straining to hear critical pieces of dialogue. If you're a long-time fan of Creepshow, the increased clarity and robust nature of the lossless track will be a welcomed improvement in the transition to the Blu-ray format. For all others, this will merely stand as a serviceable audio experience from an aging production.
I was disappointed to find out the only supplement included on the disc is a standard definition theatrical trailer for Creepshow.
Considering the success of Creepshow and Twilight Zone: The Movie, I'm surprised Hollywood has abandoned the short story structure in recent years (Sin City is the only exception I can think of). I've enjoyed Creepshow for many years now, and this new release on Blu-ray provides viewers with an entirely new visual experience. There's nothing I love more than revisiting a classic film in a resolution that comes extremely close to replicating the original theatrical experience, since it's almost like watching the film for the first time. If you're already a fan of Creepshow, this will be an easy purchase. For all others, I'd recommend a rental first, since there's a chance the mediocrity of several episodes will overrule the cost/value trade-off on this release.
Collector's Edition
1982
Collector's Edition | Limited to 2000
1982
Collector's Edition
1982
Collector's Edition | Includes Exclusive Slipcover and Posters and Prism Sticker
1982
Collector's Edition | Includes Exclusive Slipcover, Posters, Pins, Prism Sticker and Lobby Cards
1982
Collector's Edition
1982
Director's Cut
1986
1987
2013
Unrated Theatrical and Rated Versions
2013
Collector's Edition
2019
Limited to 1200 Copies
1986
Unrated Director's Cut
2006
2015
2013
4K Restoration
1981
1987
2016
Collector's Edition
1988
2019
1980
1981
1988
2015
2014
Collector's Edition
1988