Arrow is giving you three reasons to stay inside this April and avoid all the pollen outside. First is The Scarface Mob which was the movie that launched The Untouchables TV Series. Al Capone (Killdozer‘s Neville Brand) has taken over Chicago during the Roaring Twenties. Everyone is on the gangster’s payroll including most of the police force. The Feds send in Eliot Ness (Airplane‘s Robert Stack) to put together a crack unit that won’t be bribed in order to take down the underworld. It’s based on a true story and led to what was one of the most violent TV shows of its era. Basket Case is getting upgraded to 4K UHD. This is one of the classics of grizzly New York City horror films. A young guy shows up in the city carrying a giant wicker basket. What’s inside? Something the Big Apple will never recover from experiencing. Now you can see the pizza cutter scene in a higher resolution. Director Frank Henenlotter created the ultimate Psychotronic masterpiece. The Tin Star also features Neville Brand being trouble to law enforcement. Instead of being a gangster, Neville is a cowboy dealing with Henry Fonda (On Golden Pond) and Anthony Perkins. Perkins (Psycho) is the new Sheriff who isn’t quite up for the job yet. Fonda is a bounty hunter who wants to help him clean up the town. It’s directed by Anthony Mann who actually directed the first reel of Spartacus before being replaced by Stanley Kubrick. Here’s the press release from Arrow Video with all the details:
New from Arrow Video US
The Scarface Mob [Limited Edition]
4/23/24
Basket Case [Limited Edition]
4/30/24
The Tin Star [Limited Edition]
4/30/24
via MVD Entertainment Group
| This April, Arrow’s Got Gangsters, A Basket Case, and a Henry Fonda Westernin a Slate of Cult Classics |
| On April 23rd, Arrow Video debuts the gritty crime film The Scarface Mob on Limited Edition Blu-ray. Based on the book by Eliot Ness and Oscar Fraley, The Scarface Mob is the true-life account of Ness, a federal investigator, and his crack team of Treasury agents as they battle to bring the indomitable Al Capone to justice. Originally conceived as a two-part TV pilot produced by Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball (Star Trek, I Love Lucy), The Scarface Mob was so wildly successful it launched the long-running TV series The Untouchables. Directed by Phil Karlson (Walking Tall), with an eye for the stark realism of the violent street gangs of the era, the film stars Robert Stack, Neville Brand, Keenan Wynn, Barbara Nichols, and Patricia Crowley. The special features include two new video essays, a theatrical trailer, and image galleries. View the official trailer here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_c9GQPVQU0 On April 30th, Frank Henenlotter’s popular cult horror Basket Case arrives on 4K UHD in a Limited Edition release. A young man seeks vengeance on the doctors who performed an unwanted surgery that separated him from his deformed conjoined twin brother. The director (whose credits include Brain Damage and Frankenhooker) shot his low-budget debut feature in and around New York City, creating a masterpiece that has become one of the most celebrated underground films of all time. Starring Beverly Bonner, Kevin VanHentenryck, Terri Susan Smith, and Robert Vogel. Special features include two audio commentaries, interviews with cast and crew, footage from the 2017 restoration premiere, feature length documentary on the making of the film series, two video essays, two short films, outtakes, image galleries, TV spots, trailers, and more. View the official trailer here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nj5zpxypOik Also on April 30th, Anthony Mann’s gripping western thriller The Tin Star comes to home video in a Limited Edition Blu-ray. Bounty hunter Morgan Hickman (Henry Fonda) arrives in a small town overcome by fear after their sheriff is murdered. He takes the inexperienced young replacement (Anthony Perkins) under his wing, offering guidance and a sense of order in a lawless landscape. Directed by Mann in Vista Vision and with a stirring score by Elmer Bernstein, the film earned an Oscar® nomination for Best Screenplay. Starring Henry Fonda, Anthony Perkins, Neville Brand, Betsy Palmer, and an early performance by Lee Van Cleef. The special features include a new audio commentary, interviews, theatrical trailer, and an image gallery. View the official trailer here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YcudE8mUrAI |
The Scarface Mob [Limited Edition]
Crime-fighter Eliot Ness draws a tight net around Al Capone and his notorious mob.
![The Scarface Mob [Limited Edition]](data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0naHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmcnIHZpZXdCb3g9JzAgMCAyMTYgMCc+PC9zdmc+)
Originally conceived as a two-part TV pilot, The Scarface Mob is a gritty and thrilling dramatization of Eliot Ness’s account of his hunt for ruthless gangster Al Capone in Chicago during the prohibition. The film would go on to spawn The Untouchables, one of the most widely celebrated TV crime dramas of all time. Chicago, 1929. Al Capone’s ruthless gang of thugs are dealing in bootleg booze in blatant defiance of Prohibition laws, and paying off corrupt cops and crooked politicians to stay out of their way. That is, until Federal Investigator Eliot Ness is tasked with bringing down Capone’s criminal empire. To aid him in this task, he assembles a crack team of men he is sure will be incorruptible, to identify and sabotage the Capone gang’s distilleries. But when Capone, Scarface himself, gets wind that his operation is under threat, he decides to take matters into his own hands. Tautly directed by film noir veteran Phil Karlson (The Phenix City Story) and featuring memorable performances by Robert Stack (Written on the Wind) as the righteous Eliot Ness and Neville Brand (Riot in Cell Block 11) as the unhinged Al Capone, The Scarface Mob is a tense crime drama waiting to be rediscovered.
Media
Bonus Materials
- High Definition (1080p) Blu-ray presentation
- Original uncompressed dual mono 2.0 audio
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
- Gang Busters, a brand new video essay on the film and the career of director Phil Karlson by film critic David Cairns
- Philip Kemp on The Scarface Mob, a brand new video essay on the career of Eliot Ness and his depictions on film, including The Scarface Mob, by film critic Philip Kemp
- Theatrical trailer
- Gallery of original posters, lobby cards and publicity photos provided by The Scarface Mob and The Untouchables archivist Kelly Lynch
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Jennifer Dionisio
- Six postcard-sized lobby card reproductions
- Double-sided fold-out poster featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Jennifer Dionisio
- Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by Barry Forshaw and liner notes on The Untouchables by Dan Lynch and Kelly Lynch
Basket Case [Limited Edition 4k UHD]
The tenant in room 7 is very small, very twisted, and very mad.
The feature debut of director Frank Henenlotter (Brain Damage, Frankenhooker), 1982’s Basket Case is a riotous and blood-spattered “midnight movie” experience, now presented for the first time ever on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray. Duane Bradley seems like a pretty ordinary guy. His formerly conjoined twin Belial, on the other hand, is a deformed creature who lives in a wicker basket. Arriving in the Big Apple and taking up a room at a seedy hotel, the pair set about hunting down and butchering the surgeons responsible for their separation. Filmed on a shoestring budget against the backdrop of 1980s New York (where it played on the midnight movie circuit for over two-and-a-half years), Basket Case has clawed its way from its humble origins to become one of the most celebrated cult movies of all time.
Media
Bonus Materials
- 4K restoration from the original 16mm negative by MoMA
- 4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible)
- Original uncompressed PCM mono audio
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
- Audio commentary with writer/director Frank Henenlotter and star Kevin VanHentenryck
- Archival audio commentary with Frank Henenlotter, producer Edgar Ievins, actor Beverly Bonner and filmmaker Scooter McRae
- Basket Case 3-1/2: An Interview with Duane Bradley – short film by Frank Henenlotter
- Me and the Bradley Boys – interview with actor Kevin VanHentenryck
- A Brief Interview with Director Frank Henenlotter – a strange 2017 interview with the director
- Seeing Double: The Basket Case Twins – interview with actors Florence and Maryellen Schultz
- Blood, Basket and Beyond – interview with actor Beverly Bonner
- The Latvian Connection – featurette including interviews with producer Edgar Ievins, casting person/actor Ilze Balodis, associate producer/special effects artist Ugis Nigals and Belial performer Kika Nigals
- Belial Goes to the Drive-In – interview with film critic Joe Bob Briggs
- Basket Case at MoMA – footage from the 2017 restoration premiere
- What’s in the Basket? – feature-length documentary covering the three films in the Basket Case series
- In Search of the Hotel Broslin – archival location featurette
- The Frisson of Fission: Basket Case, Conjoined Twins, and ‘Freaks’ in Cinema – video essay by Travis Crawford
- Slash of the Knife (1976, 30 mins) – short made by Frank Henenlotter featuring many of the same actors from Basket Case, including optional audio commentary with Frank Henenlotter and playwright Mike Bencivenga
- Basket Case and Slash of the Knife outtakes
- Belial’s Dream (2017, 5 mins) – animated short by filmmaker Robert Morgan
- Extensive image galleries
- Trailers, TV & radio spots
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Sara Deck
- Double-sided fold-out poster featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Sara Deck
- Collector’s booklet featuring writing on the film by Michael Gingold and a Basket Case comic strip by artist Martin Trafford
The Tin Star [Limited Edition]
A cynical former sheriff turned bounty hunter helps a young, recently appointed acting sheriff with his advice, his experience and his gun.
A timeless Western from director Anthony Mann (Winchester ’73, The Far Country), The Tin Star showcases the director’s ingenuity within the genre, taking it to new heights that elevate and surpass the conventional hero-villain dynamic. When veteran bounty hunter Morg Hickman (Henry Fonda, My Darling Clementine) rolls into town, he finds the population paralyzed by fear. The local sheriff has been killed, leaving the inexperienced Ben Owens (Anthony Perkins, Psycho) to fill the void with the hope of securing a permanent position. Morg discovers that the newly appointed young sheriff is having difficulty facing the provocations of a notorious bully, Bart Bogardus (Neville Brand, Riot in Cell Block 11). Morg, a former sheriff, takes it upon himself to teach Owens how to assert himself and maintain order. Featuring memorable performances by its all-star cast and a stunning score by composer Elmer Bernstein, The Tin Star is a gripping tale that delves into the evolving dynamic between two contrasting characters as they navigate the harsh realities of the Old West.
Media
Bonus Materials
- High Definition (1080p) Blu-ray presentation
- Original lossless mono audio, and optional 2.0 stereo and 5.1 surround audio
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing on all films
- Brand new audio commentary by film historian Toby Roan
- Apprenticing a Master – a brand new appreciation of the film by author and critic Neil Sinyard
- Beyond the Score – a brand new interview with Peter Bernstein, son of Elmer Bernstein, on his father’s timeless musical mastery
- Original theatrical trailer
- Image gallery
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Sam Hadley
- Double-sided fold-out poster featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Sam Hadley
- Six postcard-sized reproduction artcards
- Illustrated collector’s bookl
