Vinegar Syndrome has announced its August batch of 4K Blu-ray and Blu-ray releases. They are:
The Incredible Melting Man (1977),
Forgotten Gialli: Volume 5 (1972-1977),
Hot Snake / Guns and Guts (1974-1976), and
The Birds II: Land's End (1994). All titles will be available for purchase on August 30.
The Incredible Melting Man 4K Blu-ray
Description: While on the first-ever voyage to the rings of Saturn, an unexplained phenomenon takes hold of astronaut Steve West and his crew, burning all but Steve to a crisp. Somehow able to return to Earth, Steve awakens in a hospital bed, only to discover that his body is disintegrating. Worse, he begins to develop an instinctual urge to kill, learning that this is the only way to maintain his strength. After escaping from the hospital, Steve begins to ravage the nearby countryside; brutally murdering all who cross his path, and leaving behind a series of mangled bodies covered in his dripping flesh…
A legendary drive-in favorite and showcase for some of special effects genius Rick Baker's earliest work, William Sachs'
The Incredible Melting Man offers an oozing 70s tribute to 1950s sci-fi cinema. Featuring veteran TV stars Burr DeBenning and Michael Alldredge, along with cult actress Cheryl Smith (Lemora, Fantasm Comes Again), a rare performance from director Jonathan Demme, and starring Alex Rebar as Steve West - The Melting Man, Vinegar Syndrome is proud to bring this quintessential cult classic to 4K Blu-ray and Blu-ray, newly restored in 4K from its 35mm original camera negative!
Special Features and Technical Specs:
- NEW 4K RESTORATION FROM THE ORIGINAL 35MM CAMERA NEGATIVE
- HDR PRESENTATION OF THE FILM
- Commentary track with writer/director William Sachs
- "It's a War" (31min) - a brand new interview with William Sachs
- "Just Show Up" (15min) - a brand new interview with script supervisor Sandy King
- Interview featurette with William Sachs and special effects artist Rick Baker
- Interview with special effects artist Greg Cannom
- Original theatrical trailer
- Still gallery
- Reversible cover artwork
- English SDH subtitles
- 4K BLU-RAY/BLU-RAY COMBO PACK
- REGION-A "LOCKED" BLU-RAY
Forgotten Gialli: Volume 5
BOX SET CONTENT:
A White Dress for Mariale
Description: When Marialé was a little girl, she witnessed her father murder her mother, along with an adulterous lover, before killing himself. Years later, Marialé has invited a group of friends over for a party at an isolated villa. As the festivities progress, an increased sense of debauchery and hedonism befalls the group, only for their perverse fun and games to be disrupted by the arrival of a mysterious killer, who begins dispatching the revelers in nasty fashion, all to cover up a secret buried deep in the past…
From the depraved mind of Romano Scavolini (Nightmares in a Damaged Brain) comes A WHITE DRESS FOR MARIALÉ, starring Euro-horror icons Evelyn Stewart (Murder Mansion), Luigi Pistilli (A Bay of Blood), and Ivan Rassimov (Jungle Holocaust). Made during the height of early 70s giallo fever, and taking cues from the psychedelic craze of the late 60s (complete with colorful scope photography by Scavolini himself) along with Italy's burgeoning sexploitation market, Vinegar Syndrome is pleased to present A WHITE DRESS FOR MARIALÉ on Blu-ray, newly restored in 4K from its original Techniscope camera negative, and featuring an assortment of new and archival interviews with its cast and crew!
Special Features and Technical Specs:
- NEW 4K RESTORATION FROM THE 35MM ORIGINAL CAMERA NEGATIVE
- "Forget This Movie" (20 min) - an interview with director Romano Scavolini
- "A White Dress For Evelyn" (55 min) - an interview with actress Ida Galli
- Audio essay by film historian and critic Rachael Nisbet (17 min)
- Deleted scenes
- Italian language original theatrical trailer
- French language original theatrical trailer
- Inside cover artwork
- Newly translated English subtitles
- REGION-FREE
Tropic of Cancer
Description: Fred and Grace Wright are vacationing in Haiti in the hope of repairing their failing marriage when they run into an old friend, Dr Williams. Excited to share the news of his latest work, Williams explains that he has developed a powerful aphrodisiac which doubles as a hallucinogen. Intrigued by their friend's discovery, the couple quickly find themselves embroiled in a high stakes plot to steal the drug, all the while a mysterious killer (or killers) begins viciously doing away with anyone who gets too close to uncovering the truth about the formula.
One of the strangest gialli, both in terms of setting and storyline, to emerge from the genre's golden age, co-directors Edoardo Mulargia (Escape From Hell) and Giampaolo Lomi's (The Barons) TROPIC OF CANCER takes an unconventional approach to the black-gloved-killer structure, adding in elements of high concept crime film and Fellini-esque surrealism. Gorgeously photographed in Techniscope by Marcello Masciocchi (The Murder Clinic), lushly scored by Piero Umiliani (Five Dolls For An August Moon), and starring Euro-sleaze stalwarts Anthony Steffen (The Night Evelyn Came out of the Grave), Anita Strindberg (Who Saw Her Die), and Gabriele Tinti (Endgame), Vinegar Syndrome is delighted to bring TROPIC OF CANCER to Blu-ray, featuring a fresh 4K restoration of its Techniscope camera negative!
Special Features and Technical Specs:
- NEW 4K RESTORATION FROM THE 35MM ORIGINAL CAMERA NEGATIVE
- Features both its original Italian language soundtrack and optional English dub
- "Sex, Voodoo and Dictatorship" (33 min) - an interview with writer/director Giampaolo Lomi
- Audio essay by film historian and critic Rachael Nisbet (18 min)
- Outtakes
- Alternate English title sequences
- Italian language original theatrical trailer
- English language original theatrical trailer
- Inside cover artwork
- Newly translated English subtitles
- REGION-FREE
Nine Guests for a Crime
Description: Nine members of an extremely rich and hateful family have decided to have a month-long reunion on a remote island in the Mediterranean. No sooner than their arrival, old grudges, resentments, and feuds make themselves known, along with allusions to some more macabre events in their past. But when their boats are torched, thus stranding them without any connection to the mainland, it becomes clear that someone is not willing to let old wounds heal, a fact made all the more clear as bodies start to pile up…
One of the many gialli which loosely adapted Agatha Christie's landmark novel, Ten Little Indians, prolific spaghetti western director Ferdinando Baldi's (Texas, Adios) sole foray into the genre, NINE GUESTS FOR A CRIME, sets the action in a picturesque villa in Sardinia, while loading on sinister twists and nasty deaths. Starring John Richardson (Black Sunday), five time Oscar nominee Arthur Kennedy (Lawrence of Arabia), and Italian character actor Massimo Foschi (Jungle Holocaust), and featuring a score by Carlo Savina (The House of Exorcism), Vinegar Syndrome is excited to bring this suspense filled sleeper to Blu-ray, sporting a new 4K restoration of its original 35mm camera negative along with a fresh interview with one of the film's few surviving participants.
Special Features and Technical Specs:
- NEW 4K RESTORATION FROM THE 35MM ORIGINAL CAMERA NEGATIVE
- Features both its original Italian language soundtrack and optional English dub
- "Giallo in Sardinia" (27 min) - an interview with actor Massimo Foschi
- Audio essay by film historian and critic Rachael Nisbet (15 min)
- Original theatrical trailer
- Inside cover artwork
- Newly translated English subtitles
- REGION-FREE
Hot Snake / Guns and Guts
Description: Fans of the Western genre will agree that the 60s and 70s were the height of the "Spaghetti Western" - Western films produced by Italians that were more gritty and violent than their American counterparts. However, some fans may not be aware that equally violent Westerns were being made in Mexico around the same time. Presented here are two excellent examples, both darker and bloodier then many of the Spaghetti Westerns produced during the same time period.
HOT SNAKE (86min): A sadistic and ruthless outlaw has been terrorizing the town of Hot Snake. A bounty hunter named Emiliano is hired by the local sheriff to hunt down the outlaw after he murders a woman and steals money belonging to the Army. Warned by a local bruja (witch) not to take the bounty, Emiliano soon finds himself the target of a mysterious man who seeks to settle a personal vendetta. Directed by Fernando Durán Rojas, HOT SNAKE is a dark and atmospheric western with supernatural elements.
GUNS AND GUTS (90min): An outlaw and a scorned husband both team up to track down and kill the man that wronged them. Along the way, the two men meet a hired gun that loves money just as much as he loves the company of women, so the two men decide to hire him in order to help them on their mission. However, things become complicated when the man they all seek to kill has risen to become a wealthy sheriff with a small army of gunmen at his disposal. Directed by acclaimed Mexican director René Cardona Jr., GUNS AND GUTS is a rough-and-tumble western with an explosively bloody ending that rivals anything created by Sam Peckinpah.
Vinegar Syndrome is proud to present these two gunsmoke-filled features for the first time on Blu-ray, scanned and restored in 4K from their 35mm original camera negatives.
Special Features and Technical Specs:
- NEW 4K RESTORATIONS OF BOTH FILMS FROM THE 35MM ORIGINAL CAMERA NEGATIVES
- "Guns, Guts and Family" - an interview with René Cardona III
- Reversible cover artwork
- Newly translated English subtitles
- REGION-FREE
The Birds II: Land's End
Description: Ted and Mary have just moved, with their two young daughters, to the sleepy coastal town of Gull Island so that Ted can complete work on his thesis. Everything couldn't seem more picturesque about their new, seaside home…that is, except for the increasing number of aggressively behaving birds. After surviving an unprovoked nighttime avian invasion, Ted becomes determined to figure out the cause of their unusual behavior; an investigation which leads him to uncover the sinister goings on in the nearby waters. All the while, the birds increase their now deadly attacks, moving up from family pets to human victims…
One of the handful of direct-to-cable-television horror movies produced in the early to mid 90s by Universal, THE BIRDS II: LAND'S END is a jaw dropping animal attack spectacle from director Rick Rosenthal (Halloween II) which stars Brad Johnson (Always), James Naughton (Cat's Eye), Chelsea Field (Master of the Universe), and Tippi Hedren (The Birds). Never released on disc, Vinegar Syndrome brings this notorious sequel to Blu-ray, newly restored from its 35mm interpositive and featuring comprehensive interviews with cast and crew.
Special Features and Technical Specs:
- NEW 2K RESTORATION FROM A 35MM INTERPOSITIVE
- Audio Commentary track with film historians Amanda Reyes and Sam Pancake
- "Don't Remake Hitchcock Movies" (54 min) - an extensive making-of documentary featuring interviews with its cast and crew
- "The Silence of the Birds" (17 min) - an interview with composer Ron Ramin
- "The Locations of Birds II" (11 min) - a locations featurette with production assistant Craig Edwards
- Still Gallery
- Reversible cover artwork
- English SDH subtitles
- REGION-A "LOCKED"