The Candy Snatchers/The Freakmaker

[norml32]

Hi guys,

I am new to this board. I wanted to post up the info on our newest upcoming DVDs. They are now streeted for Sept. 27th as we have just jumped on board with RYKO DISC for distribution.

Finally making it's home video debut:
The Candy Snatchers;
New 16x9 widescreen (1.85:1) transfer straight from the original camera neg
Full length audio commentary with stars Susan Sennet (Candy) and Tiffany Bolling (Jessie) moderated by Marc E. Heuck (Beat the Geeks).
New stereo mix and original Mono mix
The Women of The Candy Snatchers featurette.
Trailers.
Lobby card mini movie

inside the packaging is included lobby card reproductions and a mini poster.

SRP $24.95

Making it's DVD debut:
The Freakmaker (aka The Mutations)
New 16x9 widescreen (1.85:1) transfer with brilliant bright 70s colors
2 new feature length audio commentaries:
one with screenwriter/producer Robert Weinbach and star Brad Harris
The second with 91 year Oscar winner, director Jack Cardiff
New stereo and original mono tracks
How to make a Freak featurette
lobby card and poster mini movie
trailers
inside the packaging is included lobby card reproductions and a mini poster.

SRP $24.95

We are very happy with both DVDs. I should have some screeners next week and with get them to Rue Morgue for review.

Cheers.


Norm Hill
www.subversivecinema.com

[Goremeister]

Hey Norm,

Welcome to the board!

Looking forward to CANDY SNATCHERS with great anticipa....tion. Dvdmaniacs.net gave this a great review and the picture quality is supposed to be top notch.

I'm not familliar with FREAKMAKER but I will check out some reviews.

[scottstandridge]

For some reason this makes me think of those Euro-style candy commercials that were in heavy rotation for a while:

MENTOS--THE FREAKMAKER! :D

[norml32]

Hey Goremaster,

Freakmaker was also called The Mutations. It was released the same year as The Candy Snatchers.
Freakmaker stars Donald Pleasance as the mad Dr. Nolter, who experiments on crossing human DNA with plant DNA, creating hybrid monsters.
Tom Baker plays Lynch, a human freak with a mongoloid face who provides young college coeds for Nolter to experiment on, while he runs a local circus freakshow with Mr. Burns, a dwarf ring master played by Michael Dunn. The cast includes Julie Ege and Jill Haworth as the two women who become endangered, and Scott Antony (from Ken Russell's Savage Messiah) is the unfortunate student of Nolter's who ends up part of his experiment. Brad Harris (Samson) is Bryan, a US professor who gets caught up on the mayhem. And of course, we have the circus freaks, a cast of real life freaks from carnival shows. The film is a revision of the Todd Browning Freaks with an amazing film score by Basil Kirchin (The Shuttered Room) and directed by none other then Oscar winner Jack Cardiff (who at 91, supplies some excellent supplements for the DVD).
The new transfer looks fanatastic…the film has a beautiful early 70s color scheme similar to the Gene Wilder version of Willy Wonka.
Rue Morgue just contacted me today for screeners, so expect a full review of both The Candy Snatchers and Freakmaker soon.

Norm Hill
www.subversivecinema.com

[TheCrimsonGhost]

I will check these flicks out, but 25 bones seems kind of pricey. :blood:

[norml32]

Hi Crimson G.,

We have had to completely overhaul these films and give them a new restoration for the DVD releases. That is very expensive for a little company to do--not to mention the expense of producing the extras. That is why we are including lobby cards, posters, etc with the discs, to make these very much collectable dvds.
We really are aiming these to be the Criterion Collection of The Drive In movies.

Cheers.

Norm Hill
www.subversivecinema.com

PS Which by the way, we are $15/a disc cheaper then Criterion.

[The Gore-met]

Originally posted by TheCrimsonGhost

I will check these flicks out, but 25 bones seems kind of pricey. :blood:

I was quite impressed with their release of Living Hell. The image quality is great and the disc is loaded with extras. Besides, I still think it's little early to start lamenting DVD prices, it wasn't that long ago that they were more expensive than this. Don't forget, we have companies re-releasing titles for under $20 that went for $30-40 in the recent past.

[Melo]

Originally posted by The Gore-met
Don't forget, we have companies re-releasing titles for under $20 that went for $30-40 in the recent past. Exactly. I don't mind paying 25-30 for a good quality disc with lots of extras. The trailers for Freakmaker look great!

[TheCrimsonGhost]

Originally posted by norml32
Hi Crimson G.,

We have had to completely overhaul these films and give them a new restoration for the DVD releases. That is very expensive for a little company to do--not to mention the expense of producing the extras. That is why we are including lobby cards, posters, etc with the discs, to make these very much collectable dvds.
We really are aiming these to be the Criterion Collection of The Drive In movies.

Cheers.

Norm Hill
www.subversivecinema.com

PS Which by the way, we are $15/a disc cheaper then Criterion.

Thanks Norm, for your personal response. Your time and dedication to awnsering everyones questions and comments have sold me on these DVDs, just keep us posted when we can get them! :evil:

[norml32]

Sure,

Subversive is made up of movie fans, like yourself. If we weren't, these DVDs would not sparkle as much as they do. I will forever remember Matt Cimber's gasps the first time he saw WITCH restored. He literally could not speak for a few seconds...I was afraid he hated it...till the praise came rolling out.
We are getting better with each release...and I think you will see quality-wise, that our upcoming DVDs are the best the films have ever looked, period.
i still get get goose bumps when I see the Candy Snatchers and Freakmaker final versions...because I know how far they have come.

Cheers.

Norm Hill
www.subversivecinema.com

[TheCrimsonGhost]

The trailers I watched looked great, especially the candy snatchers. I really look forward to that flick!

[Ed Fir]

I want both of these - NOW.

[ROBERT BLACK]

Originally posted by norml32
Sure,

Subversive is made up of movie fans, like yourself. If we weren't, these DVDs would not sparkle as much as they do. I will forever remember Matt Cimber's gasps the first time he saw WITCH restored. He literally could not speak for a few seconds..




Did he have the same reaction when you showed him the censored DVD box art? That didn't sparkle.


I appreciate the attention you've lavished on these films. Especially The Candy Snatchers. I''ll most certainly be adding that to my collection. But not providing the uncensored boxart for Witch(or the uncensored on the inside cover) just to appease Bestbuy would rub some fans the wrong way.

[norml32]

Hi Robert,

We did not crop the box for Best Buy...it was our designer's choice given that the artwork we had as not in the best of shape for WITCH and was damaged. In fact, Best Buy to date will still not carry WITCH.
Though I must say if we have to redesign artwork to get a major chain to carry out stuff...we will have no choice. Ask Bob Murawski about Cannibal Holocaust. No printer in the USA was willing to print his box art. He had to go to a printer who sourced it out to another country. We will see if it affects his sales...
Your options are either having the films on DVD with box art that will allow the title to sell or not releasing the film at all because in our current "conservative" climate many of the major retailers will not deal with content that they consider objectionable...in the case of one of the major retailers, the buyers have been put on notice that if they bring in violent subject matter...the buyer is then held liable and can lose their job. Many accounts will just turn away if your key art "offends" them.
This is the kind of climate us indie labels are fighting to stay alive in. I am sure you can appreciate the difficulty here (even if the above case did not apply to your example on WITCH).
That being said, I like using the original key art and poster design for all of our releases, when we can access it. To me it makes the whole package of the release that much more fun.

Oh, and by the way. Matt hates the key art on Witch. It has nothing to do with the movie. In fact, it was created by UA at that time to market to the film to the drive-in crowds as a 2nd run feature because no one including UA believed the film would make any money given it's subject matter (which it did). Matt actually loves the DVD and has taken all over the world with him. Check out the back of the wrap next time (or the covers of LIVING HELL and BATTLEFIELD BASEBALL) and see how gun shy we are of showing violence!

Norm Hill
www.subversivecinema.com

[Mr Wolf]

Originally posted by TheCrimsonGhost
Thanks Norm, for your personal response. Your time and dedication to awnsering everyones questions and comments have sold me on these DVDs, just keep us posted when we can get them! :evil:
I agree with all of this but the spelling. Will be getting these for sure!:D
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[The Gore-met]

Originally posted by norml32

That being said, I like using the original key art and poster design for all of our releases, when we can access it.

Thanks for the info, Norm. Here's a question that came up recently in another thread you may be able to clear up - are there any licensing issues with artwork, as in the rights to use original artwork must be secured separately from the film rights?

[norml32]

As far the artwork goes depends on the contract for the film. Most artists are "hired" to design work for the producing company that owns the film and all work becomes the property of the production forever. However, there are causes where "high" profile talent may get some kind of backend off the design if they contracted initially to do so. I suspect it is very rare. I do not know any case where this has happened. Look at poor H.R. Giger and Alien. We all know there would be no Alien without Giger...yet, there have been two and half sequels (they apparently "adapted" his designs for number three) and a spin off that did not involve him. And you know, you can tell. The first Alien has always been the best looking of the bunch.

Norm Hill
www.subversivecinema.com

[fathomblue]

Has anyone watched it yet? I picked it up yesterday and watched the first 45 minutes, before having to head to bed. So, I'm going to try to finish it tonight.

The story really has me guessing, as I can't figure out where it's heading.

The film and sound quality is very, very good. However, the movie has locked up twice, for a few seconds, then immediately continued playing again. Not a skip, as it just stops....and then goes. No big deal, as long as it doesn't get any worse. I checked the disc and it looks perfect, so it might be a fluke.

Anyway, the whole package is very nice and I'm impressed. It was $19.99 + tax at Best Buy.

It comes with a little movie poster and about 3 or so lobby cards (?).

I haven't watched all the special features, but there are some good trailers on there. Anyone know anything about "The Witch by the Sea"? It looked very interesting.

So, any discussion on "The Candy Snatchers"?

[Mr Wolf]

I have been looking for a copy to buy around town but heard it was on back order from the distributer. Have read about this a while ago and it sounds great. Let us know how you liked it when you get a chance to finish it.
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[fathomblue]

Will do.

There were 2 copies (including the one that I bought) on the shelf at Best Buy. So, not a lot, but it was there.

[KISS Fan]

We have a thread on this already. http://www.rue-morgue.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=10537

[fathomblue]

I can't believe that no one's watched this yet.

[VampRocker]

Yeah, it definitely looks read. I'm gonna try and watch this, for sure.

:blood:

[kevinperson]

I had the rare chance to see this amazing film on the big screen a few years ago. Not only was the print fantastic...but I haven't been able to get the movie out of my head since! I was sooooooo happy when I learned about the DVD release. Just got mine copy in the mail yesterday and I'm very much looking forward to seeing this insane masterpiece of '70s exploitation again!

[TheCrimsonGhost]

I bought this a week or so ago. I am watching it tonight. :evil:

[Ace]

Originally posted by TheCrimsonGhost
I bought this a week or so ago. I am watching it tonight. :evil:

Did you get to watch it yet TheCrimsonGhost? I just watched The Candy Snatchers over the weekend and I wasn't too taken by it. The premise was great but I really disliked the 3 antagonists as they didn't come off as the most convincing bunch. Yes, the blonde woman in the group was pretty hot but that didn't make up for it.

I will say though that the character of Avery was pretty funny. Lying to his drunken wife, sleeping with the extreme babe who works in his jewellery shop, and best of all, having a candlelight dinner followed by sex, while knowing that his step daughter is 6 feet under with nothing more than an air pipe standing between her and death while her captors wait for this dude to show up with the ransom money (or in this case, diamonds) for the release of Candy. :D

I really liked how the film ended though - I won't spoil it for others.

I'm no reviewer by any means but I'd give it a 6/10.

[fathomblue]

I finished the Candy Snatchers and have to say I'm extremely impressed. It's not exactly horror and not as much of an exploitation film as I had hoped, but overall it's a good movie. At this point, I'm fairly jaded, so it would have probably gotten to me a bit more a few years ago.

I have to say, the film quality itself is AMAZING. I think it's from 1972 or so? It just looks great and have to give kudos to you guys at Subversive for putting some hard work into it.

Nice twist at the end and really a good experience all around.

[Mr Wolf]

Originally posted by fathomblue
I finished the Candy Snatchers and have to say I'm extremely impressed. It's not exactly horror and not as much of an exploitation film as I had hoped, but overall it's a good movie. At this point, I'm fairly jaded, so it would have probably gotten to me a bit more a few years ago.

I have to say, the film quality itself is AMAZING. I think it's from 1972 or so? It just looks great and have to give kudos to you guys at Subversive for putting some hard work into it.

Nice twist at the end and really a good experience all around.
Thanks for the update. I am still having trouble finding this for sale in town. I don't wan't to resort to an on line purchace but if I must.
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