John Carpenter’s Village of the Damned has its good moments, propelled by a solid ensemble cast from Christopher Reeve to Michael Pare, and a bit of the cheese factor that is kind of amusing. This Collector’s Edition release by Shout Factory offers well done video and audio transfers and a nice selection of bonus material to peruse.
Village of the Damned
— Collector’s Edition —
(1995)
Genre(s): Supernatural, Suspense, Thriller
Shout | R – 99 min. – $34.93 | April 12, 2016
Date Published: 04/10/2016 | Author: The Movieman
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PLOT SYNOPSIS |
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Something is terribly wrong in the tiny village of Midwich. After an unseen force invades a quiet coastal town, ten women mysteriously find themselves pregnant. Local physician Dr. Alan Chaffee (CHRISTOPHER REEVE) and government scientist Dr. Susan Verner (KIRSTIE ALLEY) join forces when the women simultaneously give birth… and the reign of supernatural terror begins.
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SPECIAL FEATURES – 4.5/5 |
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This “Collector’s Edition” release comes with a matted slip cover. The inside cover is reversible revealing the movie’s original poster artwork. It Takes a Village: The Making of Village of the Damned (49:17; HD) is a set of interviews with a variety of participants: Director John Carpenter, Producer Sandy King, Actors Michael Paré, Peter Jason, Meredith Salenger, Cody Dorkin, Karen Kahn, Lindsey Haun, Danielle Wiener, Thomas Dekker and Make-Up Effects Artist Greg Nicotero. Each of them discusses their role in the movie and reminisces about making the film. Horror’s Hallowed Grounds (20:58; HD) – Host Sean Clark returns to take viewers on a tour of the original filming locations. This is easily my favorite feature on these horror releases. Really would love to see a collection put together… The Go To Guy: My Career with John Carpenter (45:13; HD) is an interview with actor Peter Jason talking about working with Carpenter over the years. Last up we get some Vintage Interviews and Behind-the-Scenes Footage (24:40; SD), the Theatrical Trailer (1:59; HD) and a Behind-the-Scenes Still Gallery (2:05; HD). |
VIDEO – 4.0/5 |
| Presented in its original 2.35 widescreen aspect ratio and a 1080p high-definition transfer, Village of the Damned looked pretty darn good for a movie going on 20 years with a good color array and while there appeared to be some edge-enhancement in spots, detail at least was decent and there were no apparent bouts of aliasing, artifacts or dust marks/specs. |
AUDIO – 4.0/5 |
| The disc comes with both a 2.0 and 5.1 channel DTS-HD Master Audio tracks with the latter chosen by default. Dialogue levels sound crisp and clean throughout and there’s some decent enough depth with the score providing the majority of it while ambient noises makes some usage of the rear channels, though it is rather minor. |
OVERALL – 4.0/5 |
| Overall, John Carpenter’s Village of the Damned has its good moments, propelled by a solid ensemble cast from Christopher Reeve to Michael Pare, and a bit of the cheese factor that is kind of amusing. This Collector’s Edition release by Shout Factory offers well done video and audio transfers and a nice selection of bonus material to peruse. |
Check out some more screen caps by going to page 2. Please note, these do contain spoilers.