Eegah! Blu-ray

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Eegah! Blu-ray

Posted October 25, 2019 05:18 PM by Webmaster

The Film Detective has officially announced that it will release on Blu-ray Arch Hall, Sr.'s film Eegah! (1962), starring Arch Hall, Jr., Marilyn Manning, Richard Kiel, Arch Hall, Sr., and Clay Stearns. The release will be available for purchase on November 26.

Originally designed as a vehicle for his son, filmmaker Arch Hall Sr. assumed the roles of writer, producer, director, and actor to bring the film to fruition, utilizing pseudonyms like "Nicholas Merriwether" and "William Watters" to prevent his name from appearing multiple times in the credits.

Incorporating all of the rock 'n' roll, pop culture staples of the '60s, he added a rampaging, seven-foot-tall Neanderthal to create the thrilling comedy, which follows Eegah (Richard Kiel), a prehistoric caveman who is nearly run over by Roxy Miller (Marilyn Manning) on her way to a party. Forming a romantic interest in the young beauty, Eegah holds Roxy and her father (Hall Sr.) captive in his lair. It's up to local gas station attendant Tom Nelson (Hall Jr.) to rescue his sweetheart from the raving brute.

Matching the whimsical tone of the movie itself, Arch Sr. once said, "It was always sort of a subject of laughter that the darned thing did so well."

Despite its campy prehistoric origins, the legacy of Eegah has stood the test of time. In 1993, the movie was picked up for an episode of MST3K (1988-1999), a comedy series that made playful commentary on entertainment's most-notorious Bmovies, recently revived on Netflix in 2017. The episode further immortalized the film's most famous, satirical line, "Watch out for snakes," a comment noticeably dubbed during post-production. Eegah embedded itself so deeply into the culture of MST3K, that the show took to the road in 2017 for a live Watch Out for Snakes Tour.

MST3K is not the only organization with a longtime appreciation for the legacy of Eegah. Something Weird Video, an American film distributor dedicated to the preservation of exploitation films, has served as an integral part of Eegah's preservation. Commented owner Lisa Petrucci, "Something Weird is pleased that Eegah is getting the deluxe Blu-ray video release that it deserves! This will be the best version of the film ever made available!"

SPECIAL FEATURES AND TECHNICAL SPECS:
  • BRAND NEW 4K RESTORATION OF THE FILM
  • Joel Hodgson, creator of MST3K, gives his take on the Hall family and his evolving appreciation for the film following the 1993 episode; and the star himself, Arch Hall Jr., shares personal insights on his father's spur-of-the-moment plot idea, reveals which of his family members appear in cameos throughout the film and offers behind-the-scenes details from production.
  • Optional English subtitles for the main feature