Christmas season has already started and it’s time to think about what you’ll get yourself for a gift this year. Arrow Video has three releases that will please your need for colorful New York gangs, old Hollywood drama and cowboy action shot in Spain and Italy. The Warriors is finally getting an upgrade to 4K UHD which is great so you can enjoy Andy Lazlo’s cinematography in detail. The man put a lot into capturing what happens when members of the Warriors gang come to Manhattan for a massive meet up and has to fight for their lives to get home. The film was a pure rush of urban action with strange gangs including the Baseball Furies tracking down the Warriors. I’m not sure why Walter Hill had to recut the film and toss in animation scenes for his Director’s Cut, but the best new is that the original theatrical version is going to be in 4K UHD. Be prepared to enjoy one of the best ’70s films without the fear of gang violence shutting down the screening. Day of the Locust adapts Nathanael West’s legendary novel about people aspiring to work in the film business. The film features Jackie Earl Haley Jr. before he’d become iconic as Kelly Leak in The Bad News Bears. While your kids might be thinking about candy canes, you’ll be craving a plate full of pasta with the arrival of another boxset of Spaghetti Westerns. Savage Guns: Four Classic Westerns Volume 3 has I Want Him Dead, El Puro, Wrath of the Wind and Four of the Apocalypse blazing up the screen. I’m looking forward to seeing Four of the Apocalypse since it was directed by horror master Lucio Fulci.
Here’s the press release from Arrow Video with all the details:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
New from Arrow Video US
The Warriors [Limited Edition]
12/12/23
The Day of the Locust
12/5/23
Savage Guns: Four Classic Westerns Volume 3 [Limited Edition]
12/12/23
via MVD Entertainment Group
| Arrow Video Offers Action, Thrills and Westerns this DecemberCelebrate the Festive Season with Six Classic Films From Legendary Directors |
| On December 12th, Arrow Video invites The Warriors to come out and play in a new 4K UHD Blu-ray release and Limited Edition Blu-ray set. The action-thriller sets feature exclusive new 4K remasters of both the theatrical cut and the 2005 alternate version of the film sourced from the original camera negative, approved by director Walter Hill. After the assassination of respected gang leader Cyrus, the Warriors are framed for the murder and must traverse the boroughs of New York on foot to get back home to Coney Island. Hill’s thrilling and visually stunning adaptation of Sol Yurick’s novel (itself a retelling of the Greek story of Anabasis) features performances by Michael Beck, James Remar, Deborah Van Valkenburgh, and David Patrick Kelly. |
On December 5th, Arrow Video delivers director John Schlesinger’s classic drama, The Day of the Locust, on Blu-ray for the first time, newly remastered in 2K from the original negative. This adaptation from screenwriter Waldo Salt, based on the 1939 novel of the same name by Nathanael West, offers a nightmarish depiction of Hollywood. An aspiring starlet (Karen Black, nominated for a Golden Globe for this performance) makes a slow descent into the darkest recesses of Hollywood’s broken dreams. The film features stunning performances from an all-star cast, including Donald Sutherland, Burgess Meredith, William Atherton, Geraldine Page, Jackie Earle Haley, Bo Hopkins, Richard Dysart, and Pepe Serna.
The special features include a brand new oral history audio commentary conducted by writer and film historian Lee Gambin, featuring assistant directors Leslie Asplund and Charles Ziarko, production associate Michael Childers, and actors Grainger Hines and Pepe Serna among others; Welcome to West Hollywood – a brand new appreciation of the film by critic Glenn Kenny; Days of the Golden Age – costume historian and film historian Elissa Rose discusses the film’s costumes in this brand new visual essay; Jeepers Creepers, Where’d You Get Those Peepers? – a brand new visual essay on the film and its themes by writer and film historian Lee Gambin; image galleries, including exclusive behind-the-scenes photographs from the archives of production associate Michael Childers and assistant camera operator Ron Vidor; a reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Colin Murdoch; and an illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by Pamela Hutchinson.
On December 12th, Arrow Video proudly presents the newest addition to their Italian Western box set series, Savage Guns: Four Classic Westerns Volume 3 (Limited Edition). Featuring four late-era Italian Westerns where vengeance, politics, money, greed, and cynicism all collide with the disillusionment of the late 60’s and early 70’s to explosive effect. The box set includes director Paolo Bianchini’s brutal I Want Him Dead, a story of a soldier (Craig Hill) seeking vengeance for his murdered sister that could cause the Civil War peace talks to end in another full-out war; director Edoardo Mulargia’s El Puro, about a gunfighter’s (Robert Woods) dreams of love and a second chance at life that are destroyed by bounty hunters on his trail; Terence Hill stars in director Mario Camus’s Wrath of the Wind as a hitman with a conscience who’s hired to kill the heads of a newly formed and growing labor union by a ruthless land baron; and Italian icons Fabio Testi and Tomas Milian face off in director Lucio Fulci’s horror-tinged tale of survival in Four of the Apocalypse.
The 4-disc Limited Edition Blu-ray set includes 2K restorations of all four films from the original 35mm camera negatives, with El Puro newly restored for this release; Italian and English front and end titles on all four films; restored original lossless mono Italian and English soundtracks on all four films; brand new introductions to each film by journalist and critic Fabio Melelli; an illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the films by author and critic Howard Hughes; a fold-out double-sided poster featuring newly commissioned artwork by Gilles Vranckx; limited edition packaging with reversible sleeves featuring original artwork and a slipcover featuring newly commissioned artwork by Gilles Vranckx.
The Day Of The Locust
Director John Schlesinger’s satire of 1930’s Hollywood decadence and broken dreams.
Academy Award-winner John Schlesinger (Marathon Man) reunites with Midnight Cowboy screenwriter Waldo Salt (Coming Home), a victim of the 1950s McCarthy-era blacklist, to adapt Nathanael West’s acid satire of Hollywood decadence and broken dreams. Painter Tod Hackett (William Atheron, Looking for Mr. Goodbar), working in the art department of a movie studio during the 1930s ‘golden age’ of Hollywood, falls in unrequited love with aspiring starlet Faye Greener (Karen Black, Five Easy Pieces). He competes for her affections against other men: a pair of cowboys (Bo Hopkins, American Graffiti and Pepe Serna, Scarface), and a forlorn accountant (Donald Sutherland, Invasion of the Body Snatchers). As Faye’s career fails to take her beyond roles as an extra, her life becomes increasingly desperate and her relationships with men take a darker turn, reaching fever pitch at a red-carpet movie premiere that explodes into barbaric chaos. A bitter critique of tinsel-town’s empty promises and the lost souls cheated by them, featuring lush, dreamlike cinematography by Conrad Hall (In Cold Blood), and stunning performances by its talented cast, The Day of the Locust remains a relevant and shattering experience.
Media
Bonus Materials
- Brand new 2K remaster by Arrow Films from the original negative
- High Definition (1080p) Blu-ray presentation
- Original restored lossless mono audio
- Optional restored lossless 5.1 and 2.0 stereo audio options
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing on all films
- Brand new oral history audio commentary conducted by writer and film historian Lee Gambin, featuring assistant directors Leslie Asplund and Charles Ziarko, production associate Michael Childers, actors Grainger Hines and Pepe Serna among others
- Welcome to West Hollywood – brand new appreciation of the film by critic Glenn Kenny
- Days of the Golden Age – costume historian and film historian Elissa Rose discusses the film’s costumes in this brand new visual essay
- Jeepers Creepers, Where’d You Get Those Peepers? – brand new visual essay on the film and its themes by writer and film historian Lee Gambin
- Image galleries, including exclusive behind-the-scenes photographs from the archives of production associate Michael Childers and assistant camera operator Ron Vidor
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Colin Murdoch
- Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by Pamela Hutchinson
Savage Guns: Four Classic Westerns Volume 3 (Limited Edition)
Four of the Italian western’s hardest, cruelest, bloodiest classics erupt from the screen in this feature-packed box set from Arrow Films.
Maniacal outlaws thirsting for blood! Corrupt capitalists profiting from the suffering of the common folk! Desperate people pushed to violent revenge! The Italian western has never been grittier than in this quartet of later-period cult classics, in which the trademark cynicism of the genre escalates into the radical pessimism of the late 1960s / early 1970s world. In Paolo Bianchini’s I Want Him Dead, American actor Craig Hill stars as an ex-Confederate soldier who vows revenge after his sister is raped and murdered, in so doing setting him on a collision course with a dastardly plot to disrupt peace talks between the North and South. Next, in Edoardo Mulargia’s El Puro, western icon Robert Woods gives arguably his greatest performance as a legendary gunfighter forced to emerge from hiding after the bounty hunters on his tail murder the tender-hearted barmaid who offered him a new life. Then, in Mario Camus’ Wrath of the Wind, genre superstar Terence Hill shows his darker side as an assassin who finds his conscience when he and his brother are hired by a ruthless landholder to kill the leaders of a growing labor movement. Finally, Fabio Testi and Tomas Milian star in Lucio Fulci’s Four of the Apocalypse, in which a quartet of misfits go from sharing the same jail cell to embarking on a savage odyssey that will lead to torture, rape and cannibalism. Preyed upon by a ruthless bandit, the foursome fight for their lives – until the time comes for revenge. Four of the Italian western’s hardest, cruelest, bloodiest classics erupt from the screen in this feature-packed box set from Arrow Films. Featuring dazzling High Definition restorations and a wealth of brand new bonus materials produced specially for this release, Savage Guns delivers – from both barrels!
Media
Bonus Materials
- 4-DISC LIMITED EDITION CONTENTS
- High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentations of all four films
- 2K restorations of all four films from the original 35mm camera negatives, with El Puro newly restored by Arrow Films for this release
- Italian and English front and end titles on all four films
- Restored original lossless mono Italian and English soundtracks on all four films
- English subtitles for the Italian soundtracks
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing for the English soundtracks
- Brand new introductions to each film by journalist and critic Fabio Melelli
- Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the films by author and critic Howard Hughes
- Fold-out double-sided poster featuring newly commissioned artwork by Gilles Vranckx
- Limited edition packaging with reversible sleeves featuring original artwork and a slipcover featuring newly commissioned artwork by Gilles Vranckx
- DISC 1 – I WANT HIM DEAD
- Brand new audio commentary by critics Adrian J. Smith and David Flint
- The Man Who Hated Violence – brand new interview with director Paolo Bianchini
- Cut and Shot – brand new interview with editor Eugenio Alabiso
- Nico Unchained – archival interview with composer Nico Fidenco
- English theatrical trailer
- Image gallery
- DISC 2 – EL PURO
- Two versions of the film: the 98-minute cut, presented in Italian and English, and the longer, 108-minute version, presented in both Italian and a newly created hybrid English/Italian mix*
- Brand new audio commentary by critics Troy Howarth and Nathaniel Thompson
- Brand new interview with actor Robert Woods
- Brand new, in-depth appreciation of the soundtrack and its composer, Alessandro Alessandroni, by musician and disc collector Lovely Jon
- DISC 3 – WRATH OF THE WIND
- Alternate, 106-minute Spanish-language version of the film, featuring additional and extended scenes not found in the Italian or English versions
- Brand new audio commentary by author and critic Howard Hughes
- The Days of Wrath – brand new interview with camera operator Roberto D’Ettorre Piazzoli
- They Call It… Red Cemetery! – a short film from 2022 by filmmaker Francisco Lacerda, serving as a love letter to the spaghetti western genre
- Alternate “Revenge of Trinity” opening titles, newly restored for this release
- Image gallery
- DISC 4 – FOUR OF THE APOCALYPSE
- Brand new audio commentary by author and producer Kat Ellinger
- It Takes Four – previously unreleased interview with production manager Roberto Sbarigia
- Brand new, in-depth appreciation of the film by author, critic and Lucio Fulci scholar Stephen Thrower
- Brand new, in-depth appreciation of the soundtrack and its composers, Franco Bixio, Fabio Frizzi and Vince Tempera, by musician and disc collector Lovely Jon
- Newly restored theatrical trailer
- Image gallery
- * For some scenes and dialogue lines in the long version, the Italian audio is either lost or was never produced. These are presented in Spanish with English subtitles.
The Warriors [Limited Edition 4K UHD]
A street gang known as The Warriors must fight their way from the Bronx to Coney Island when they are falsely accused of assassinating a gang leader.
In 1979, fresh from directing bare knuckle boxing movie Hard Times and supercool crime thriller The Driver, Walter Hill delivered his third stone cold classic in a row: The Warriors, a slam-bang, visually kinetic action movie that mixed a heightened comic-book sensibility with a timeless tale from ancient Greece and set them loose in the streets of modern America. In New York the gangs outnumber the cops by 5-1. Together, they could rule the city. Gang-leader Cyrus has a dream to do just that and calls a summit. The gangs of New York gather in their thousands, Cyrus takes the stage. From somewhere in the crowd a shot rings out and Cyrus falls down dead. In the chaos that follows, a small gang from Coney Island – the Warriors – are blamed. Now everyone is out to get them. On foot, in enemy territory, can they make it through the night to get back across the city to the safety of home turf? For all you boppers out there, for all you street people with an ear for the action… the iconic cult classic is back in a brand new 4K restoration approved by director Walter Hill. Can you dig it?
Media
Bonus Materials
- 2-DISC 4K ULTRA HD BLU-RAY LIMITED EDITION CONTENTS
- Exclusive new 4K remasters of both the Theatrical Cut and the 2005 Alternate Version of the film sourced from the original camera negative, supervised by Arrow Films and approved by director Walter Hill
- 4K Ultra HD (2160p) Blu-ray presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible) of both versions of the film
- Theatrical Cut presented in original aspect ratio of 1.85:1 for the first time on home video
- Original uncompressed mono, plus stereo 2.0 and Dolby Atmos audio options for the Theatrical Cut, plus stereo 2.0 and DTS-HD MA 5.1 for the 2005 Alternate Version
- Optional English Subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
- 100-page collector’s book containing new writing by film critic Dennis Cozzalio plus select archival material
- Limited Edition packaging with reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Laurie Greasley
- Double-sided fold-out poster with original and newly commissioned artwork by Laurie Greasley
- 6 postcard-sized artcards
- Gang logo stickers
- DISC 1: THEATRICAL CUT (4K ULTRA HD BLU-RAY)
- New commentary by film critic Walter Chaw, author of A Walter Hill Film
- War Stories, a new interview with director Walter Hill
- New roundtable discussion in which filmmakers Josh Olson (A History of Violence), Lexi Alexander (Green Street), and Robert D. Kryzkowski (The Man Who Killed Hitler and then Bigfoot) discuss their love of The Warriors and the work of Walter Hill
- Battling Boundaries, new interview with editor Billy Weber
- Gang Style, new interview with costume designer Bobbie Mannix
- Armies of the Night, new exclusive look at costume designs and photographs from the archive of designer Bobbie Mannix
- Sound of the Streets, new appreciation of composer Barry De Vorzon and the music of The Warriors by film historian Neil Brand
- Isolated score option
- Come Out to Play, new look at the iconic locations of the Warriors’ Coney Island home turf
- The Beginning, archive extra looking back on how The Warriors came to be
- Battleground, archive extra in which director Walter Hill and assistant director David O. Sosna look back at the difficulties of shooting on location in New York City
- The Way Home, archive extra on the look of film with director of photography Andrew Laszlo
- The Phenomenon, archive extra
- Theatrical trailer
- Image gallery
- DISC 2: 2005 ALTERNATE VERSION (4K ULTRA HD BLU-RAY)
- Archive introduction by director Walter Hill
