Leave it to Vinegar Syndrome to dredge up a movie like Berserker but there is something charming about this D-movie, yes it’s a tad dull at times and a weird mix of Nordic lore and 1980s slasher, but I found it fairly entertaining for what it is.
Berserker
(1987)
Genre(s): Horror
Vinegar Syndrome | NR – 85 min. – $34.95 | October 29, 2019
Date Published: 11/13/2019 | Author: The Movieman
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Vinegar Syndrome provided me with a free copy of the Blu-ray I reviewed in this Blog Post.
The opinions I share are my own.
PLOT SYNOPSIS |
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A group of friends have set out on a camping trip in a rural part of Utah. Although warned by kindly Norwegian immigrant, Pappy Nyquist (GEORGE FLOWERS), of a series of recent killings, supposedly the result of a bear, the campers are undeterred and decide to spend the night outdoors, getting drunk and sharing stories of berserkers, ruthlessly violent viking warriors who wore bear skins and snouts. Not long after pairing off for romantic escapades, they find themselves terrorized and ripped apart by a large and violent bear…but is it actually a bear, or perhaps a real life berserker who has somehow been transported to the 20th century… |
SPECIAL FEATURES – 3.0/5 |
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The limited edition release comes with a thick slip cover and a foldout poster. Audio Commentary — Justin Kerswell and Joseph Henson of the Hysteria Continues. This track is pretty interesting as the pair tell the historical aspects of the movie and if you’re familiar with the Hysteria Continues, you’ve heard commentaries on other horror movies. Interviews:
Stills Gallery (1:38) |
VIDEO – 4.5/5 |
| Berserker marks its long awaited “world disc premiere”, presented in the film’s original 1.85 widescreen aspect ratio and has been given a new 1080p high-definition transfer. The picture was newly scanned and restored in 2K from the original 35mm camera negative. The movie has a heavy amount of the natural film grain and noise and while there is some scratches and dust marks that crop up every so often, this was still impressive, especially for a movie of this ilk. |
AUDIO – 4.25/5 |
| The disc comes with a DTS-HD Master Audio Mono track which actually was somewhat impressive, dialogue (such as it is) comes through with fine clarity and other than a little white noise in some scenes, the natural environment of our ensemble aimlessly wandering through the forest adds some fine depth. |
OVERALL – 3.5/5 |
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Leave it to Vinegar Syndrome to dredge up a movie like Berserker but there is something charming about this D-movie, yes it’s a tad dull at times and a weird mix of Nordic lore and 1980s slasher, but I found it fairly entertaining for what it is. |