The hot and humid nights of July demand you stay inside by the air conditioner and discover a few obscure cinematic gems on Blu-ray. Luckily Arrow Video has dug into the vaults to give prime presentations to films you might have overlooked for various reasons. First is FM, which takes us back to those days when radio stations had real humans playing records in the studios. The movie follows an album oriented rock station that’s found themselves in difficult times after they reach the top of the ratings. The film rarely gets any airplay even with a stellar cast including Martin Mull as a DJ who doesn’t know how to turn off his microphone when a fan drops by the booth. The Loveless ought to be more popular since it features Oscar winner Kathryn Bigelow’s directorial debut as she shares the duties with Monty Montgomery. The duo co-wrote the script so it’s a shared vision of ’50s greaser bikers heading down to Florida for a big race. They get detoured at a greasy spoon near a gas station. Willem Dafoe is brilliant as the somewhat leader of this gang. It’s almost a prequel to his character in Streets of Fire. The bonus features expose how the actors were mostly New Yorkers who came down to Savannah, Georgia for the summer to wear leather and look tough. It’s hypnotic as the camera explores all the ’50s props on the location.
The Chill Factor should cool you off with a tale of kids snowmobiling around “Minnesota.” There’s trouble when a race leads to a wreck. The only shelter is an old religious school that might not be the religion that people perceive. This leads to the bad spirits taking control of the frozen story. The film was part of the Wisconsin film wave that included last May’s Trapped Alive. There’s enough snow on the screen to lower your air conditioning bill. Hold Back the Dawn is from Hollywood’s classic studio era. Romanian-born gigolo attempts to sell his life story to a movie producer for quick cash. It’s a twisting tale of international adventure and plenty of ladies. It stars Dame Olivia Mary de Havilland who just celebrated her 103rd birthday. The last film of the month is John Hughes’ Weird Science. Two high schoolers decide the best way to understand girls is to build their own woman as a computer simulator. But thanks to a storm, their dream woman appears and they’re doing their best to hang on. The film brought Robert Downey Jr. into the John Hughes universe. It also gave us the great Bill Paxton as the douchebag Chet. The film broke from Hughes’ heartfelt teen angst films as it seemed a PG version of one of his National Lampoon magazine stories. The lack of science makes it a great piece of goofy ’80s fun.
Here’s the press release from Arrow Video with the films and their bonus features:
FM (July 2)
The airwaves crackle with the delectable sound of smooth rock in FM, a riotous comedy about the heady world of late-70s US radio. Michael Brandon (Four Flies on Grey Velvet) stars as Jeff Dugan, the ultra-cool program director at Q-SKY Radio, LA’s number one rock station. Dugan encourages a free-wheeling culture at work, employing an array of eccentric DJ personalities: Mother (Eileen Brennan, Private Benjamin), a husky, world-weary ex-hippie; Eric Swan (Martin Mull, Clue), a mad-cap romantic looking for love, and The Prince of Darkness (Cleavon Little, Blazing Saddles), a cool cat who keeps the night-time airwaves alive. But when the station’s future is thrown in to jeopardy by corporate bosses looking to cash-in, the Q-SKY troupe are forced to batten down the hatches and turn up the volume – will a fully-fledged rock ‘n’ roll rebellion save the day? Legendary cinematographer John A. Alonzo (Chinatown, Scarface) directs this slickly-produced rock film, which combines hilarious studio hijinks with epic footage of Linda Ronstadt and Jimmy Buffett in concert. FM also boasts an incredible platinum-selling soundtrack featuring a pantheon of AOR greats including Steely Dan, The Doobie Brothers, Eagles and Tom Petty (who also cameos). Now, High Fidelity meets High Definition as FM debuts on blu-ray with a selection of exciting new extras.
Bonus Materials
High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation transferred from original film elements
Uncompressed stereo 2.0 PCM audio soundtrack
Mono 1.0 music and effects track
Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
No Static at All, a newly filmed interview with Michael Brandon, the star of FM
Radio Chaos, a newly filmed interview with Ezra Sacks, the writer of FM
The Spirit of Radio, a newly filmed video appreciation of the era of FM radio and the FM soundtrack by the film and music critic Glenn Kenny
Extensive gallery of original stills, promotional images and soundtrack sleeves
Original trailers • Reversible sleeve featuring two original artwork options
FIRST PRESSING ONLY: Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by writer and critic Paul Corupe
The Loveless (July 9)
THEY’RE GOING NOWHERE… FAST! The United States, late 1950s. A time of generational conflict, of immense social change, of bold fashions and toe-tapping music – just some of the elements that collide in thrilling fashion in The Loveless, the feature debut of both its star, Willem Dafoe (To Live and Die in LA), and its directors, Monty Montgomery (producer, David Lynch’s Wild at Heart) and future Academy Award®-winner* Kathryn Bigelow (Near Dark, Detroit). A motorcycle gang roars into a small southern town en route to the Daytona races, unnerving and angering the locals with their standoffish attitude and disrespect for social niceties. When one of their number, the charismatic Vance (Dafoe), hooks up with sportscar-driving Telena (Marin Kanter, Endangered Species), he incurs the wrath of the girl’s father, setting the gang on a collision course with the rest of the town as simmering tensions boil over into violent retribution. Raw, angry and honest, The Loveless evokes, with unflinching clarity, both an attitude and a bygone era, exploring the tensions between two very different Americas – now fully restored and presented in high definition for the first time in this feature-packed new edition from Arrow Video! * 2010, Best Director, Best Picture: The Hurt Locker. “ACADEMY AWARD®” is a registered trademark and service mark of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
Bonus Materials
Brand new 2K restoration from the original camera negative by Arrow Films, approved by co-writer/co-director Monty Montgomery and director of photography Doyle Smith
High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation • Original lossless mono audio • Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
New audio commentary with co-writer/co-director Monty Montgomery, moderated by Elijah Drenner
No Man’s Friend Today: Making The Loveless, new video interviews with actors Willem Dafoe, Marin Kanter, Robert Gordon, Phillip Kimbrough and Lawrence
U.S. 17: Shooting The Loveless, new video interviews with producers Grafton Nunes and A. Kitman Ho
Chrome and Hot Leather: The Look of The Loveless, new interviews with production designer Lilly Kilvert and director of photography Doyle Smith
Relentless, new audio interview with musician Eddy Dixon • Extensive image gallery, including on-set photographs, storyboards and original production
Theatrical trailer
Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Gilles Vranckx
FIRST PRESSING ONLY: Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by Peter Stanfield
The Chill Factor (July 16)
The Exorcist meets the Winter Olympics in this tale of demonic possession and snowbound slashing from director Christopher Webster, producer of Hellraiser and Hellraiser II: Hellbound. For a group of young couples, a snowmobiling trip turns into a waking nightmare when one of their number is thrown from their vehicle and knocked unconscious. Seeking refuge in a nearby abandoned summer camp, the group find themselves holed up in a cabin filled with bizarre and ominous religious artefacts. As night falls, the discovery of a Ouija board amidst the dusty relics awakens a terrifying evil. Barely released outside of its original VHS outing (for which it was retitled Demon Possessed), cult enthusiasts Arrow Video have dug up The Chill Factor from its wintry analogue grave so horror fans can rediscover this heady mixture of snow, slaughter and Satan!
Bonus Materials
Brand new 2K restoration from original film elements
High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation Original uncompressed stereo audio
Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
Brand new audio commentary with special effects artist Hank Carlson and horror writer Josh Hadley
Brand new on-camera interview with makeup artist Jeffery Lyle Segal
Brand new on-camera interview with production manager Alexandra Reed
Brand new on-camera interview with stunt coordinator Gary Paul
Still Gallery Original VHS trailer
Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Marc Schoenbach TO BE REVEALED
FIRST PRESSING ONLY: Collector’s booklet featuring new writing by Mike White
Hold Back the Dawn (July 16)
From one of the most underrated directors of Hollywood’s golden era, Mitchell Leisen (Remember the Night), comes the heart-rending romantic drama Hold Back the Dawn… Charles Boyer (Gaslight) gives an enthralling performance as Georges Iscovescu, a Romanian-born gigolo who arrives at a Mexican border town seeking entry to the US. Faced with a waiting period of eight years, George is encouraged by his former dancing partner Anita (Pauline Goddard, Modern Times) to marry an American girl and desert her once safely across the border. He successfully targets visiting school teacher Emmy Brown (Olivia de Havilland, Gone with the Wind), but his plan is compromised by a pursuing immigration officer, and blossoming feelings of genuine love for Emmy. A moving and thoughtful film with a wonderful script (co-written by Billy Wilder), Hold back the Dawn benefits from evocative performances by Boyer and de Havilland, and an over-arching sense of romantic melancholy. An enduring classic of its era, Leisen’s film was nominated for no-less than six Academy Awards and is presented here in High Definition for the first time.
Bonus Materials
High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation transferred from original film elements
Uncompressed Mono 1.0 PCM audio soundtrack • Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
New audio commentary by film scholar Adrian Martin • Love Knows No Borders, a newly filmed video appreciation by film critic Geoff Andrew
The Guardian Lecture: Olivia de Havilland, A career-spanning onstage audio interview with Olivia de Havilland recorded at the National Film Theatre in 1971
Rare hour-long radio adaptation of Hold Back the Dawn from 1941 starring Charles Boyer, Paulette Goddard and Susan Haywood
Gallery of original stills and promotional images
Original trailer
Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Jennifer Dionisio
FIRST PRESSING ONLY: Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by writer and critic Farran Smith Nehme
Weird Science (July 23)
THEY WENT FROM ZEROES TO HEROES IN ONE FANTASTIC WEEKEND. If you can’t get a date… make one! After proving himself the king of heartfelt teen flicks with Sixteen Candles and The Breakfast Club, writer-director John Hughes infused the genre with a hefty dose of wacked-out sci-fi comedy in Weird Science, a film where every teenage boy’s wildest fantasies come to life. Perenially picked-on high school nerds Gary (Anthony Michael Hall, Sixteen Candles) and Wyatt (Ilan Mitchell-Smith) are sick of their status at the bottom of the social food chain. Using Wyatt’s computer, the two hatch a plan to create their dream woman – and following a massive power surge, that woman unexpectedly appears in the form of Lisa (Kelly LeBrock). Gorgeous, intelligent, and blessed with limitless magic powers, Lisa makes the boys’ dreams come true… but what about Wyatt’s gun-toting psycho older brother Chet (Bill Paxton), and the two bullies (Robert Downey Jr and Vamp‘s Robert Rusler) determined to put them back in their place? Inspired by EC Comics and boosted by a killer soundtrack (including the classic title theme by Oingo Boingo), Weird Science has never looked better than in this new special edition, including an exclusive extended version of the film featuring deleted scenes never released on home video before.
Bonus Materials
New restoration by Arrow Films from a 4K scan of the original negative
High Definition (1080p) Blu-ray presentation of the original Theatrical Version of the film (94 mins), plus seamlessly-branched exclusive Extended Version (97 mins), featuring two additional scenes newly remastered in high-definition
Original lossless stereo audio, plus 5.1 DTS-HD MA surround option (theatrical version only)
Original English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing • Edited-for-TV version of the film (SD only, 95 mins), plus comparison featurette highlighting the alternate dubs and takes
Option to watch additional scenes from the Extended Version separately
Newly-filmed interview with special makeup creator Craig Reardon • Newly-filmed interview with composer Ira Newborn
Newly-filmed interview with supporting actor John Kapelos • All-new interview with casting director Jackie Burch
It’s Alive: Resurrecting Weird Science, an archive documentary featuring interviews with cast, crew and admirers, including star Anthony Michael Hall
Theatrical trailers and TV spots
Image gallery
Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Tracie Ching
FIRST PRESSING ONLY: Illustrated collectors’ booklet featuring new writing on the film by Alexandra Heller-Nicholas and Amanda Reyes
