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Arrow Video’s ‘Audition’ Blu-Ray Release Goes Deeper, Deeper, Deeper

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Audition

It’s been over a decade since my first viewing experience of Takashi Miike’s Audition. I remember watching this one during a time when I was beginning to break away from more traditional mainstream horror and was delighted and horrified with the result. Audition was and remains a treat all these years later, and holds a certain moral and prevalent juxtaposition alongside the current state of sexual politics.

Audition centers around Aoyama, (Ryo Ishibashi) a lonely soul who recently lost his wife to illness, and is left to take care of his teenage son. When he has all but given up on love, his friend comes up with the idea of holding a fake film casting audition in order to help his socially secluded friend find love once again.

During the audition, Aoyama is entirely taken with the timid and beautiful, Asami (Eihi Shiina). What starts off as a heartwarming setup for something out of the When Harry Met Sally playbook, ends up spiraling into all-out twisting, atmospheric dread. This all comes to head with one of the genre’s most memorable endings.

Miike is methodical with the his bizarre pacing for Audition. What begins as an endearing setup for a barebones love story for the first 45 minutes, is completely rocked into a total violent creep fest with an electric jolt.

This occurs when Aoyama innocently decides to call Asami back for the first time. In the scene, the lovesick Aoyama nervously paces back and forth with schoolboy sensibilities before finally making his phone call. The film then cuts to Asami sitting on her knees leaning forward in a desolate apartment looking at a black rotary phone. You see a smile creeps across her face through her draped black hair  and you get your first look at a large burlap sack sitting in the corner.

From there this movie takes you for the full Miike experience. This includes horror, dream logic and dangerous visuals. A tightly wound nightmare of a film that holds up entirely.

Arrow Video does a fantastic job with this long-treasured, cult release. Complete with a brand new interview with Takashi Miike and an awkwardly perfect intro by Miike sitting timidly in an audition chair are all must see features for initiated fans.

 Complete features include:

  • Brand new 2K restoration of original vault elements
  • Original 5.1 Dolby Surround Audio
  • Optional English subtitles
  • Audio commentary with director Takashi Miike and screenwriter Daisuke Tengan
  • Brand new commentary by Miike biographer Tom Mes examining the film and its source novel
  • Introduction by Miike
  • Ties that Bind – A brand new interview with Takashi Miike
  • Interviews with stars Ryo Ishibashi, Eihi Shiina, Renji Ishibashi and Ren Osugi
  • Damaged Romance: An appreciation by Japanese cinema historian Tony Rayns
  • Trailers
  • Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Matthew Griffin
  • FIRST PRESSING ONLY: Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by Anton Bitel.
  • Audition is a pitch perfect genre ride and Arrow does a fantastic job of reaffirming that. All of You Audition initiated fans out there owe it to Miike to find a friend who hasn’t seen this yet and demand they have a watch.

Arrow Video’s stellar Audition blu-ray is out now and can be found here.

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Brad Dourif Says He’s Retiring Except For One Important Role

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Brad Dourif has been doing movies for nearly 50 years. Now it seems he is walking away from the industry at 74 to enjoy his golden years. Except, there is a caveat.

Recently, digital entertainment publication JoBlo’s Tyler Nichols talked to some of the Chucky television series cast members. During the interview, Dourif made an announcement.

“Dourif said that he’s retired from acting,” says Nichols. “The only reason he came back for the show was because of his daughter Fiona and he considers Chucky creator Don Mancini to be family. But for non-Chucky stuff, he considers himself retired.”

Dourif has voiced the possessed doll since 1988 (minus the 2019 reboot). The original movie “Child’s Play” has become such a cult classic it’s at the top of some people’s best chillers of all time. Chucky himself is ingrained in pop culture history much like Frankenstein or Jason Voorhees.

While Dourif may be known for his famous voiceover, he is also an Oscar-nominated actor for his part in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. Another famous horror role is The Gemini Killer in William Peter Blatty’s Exorcist III. And who can forget Betazoid Lon Suder in Star Trek: Voyager?

The good news is that Don Mancini is already pitching a concept for season four of Chucky which might also include a feature-length movie with a series tie-in. So, Although Dourif says he is retiring from the industry, ironically he is Chucky’s friend till the end.

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Editorial

7 Great ‘Scream’ Fan Films & Shorts Worth a Watch

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The Scream franchise is such an iconic series, that many budding filmmakers take inspiration from it and make their own sequels or, at least, build upon the original universe created by screenwriter Kevin Williamson. YouTube is the perfect medium to showcase these talents (and budgets) with fan-made homages with their own personal twists.

The great thing about Ghostface is that he can appear anywhere, in any town, he just needs the signature mask, knife, and unhinged motive. Thanks to Fair Use laws it’s possible to expand upon Wes Craven’s creation by simply getting a group of young adults together and killing them off one by one. Oh, and don’t forget the twist. You’ll notice that Roger Jackson’s famous Ghostface voice is uncanny valley, but you get the gist.

We have gathered five fan films/shorts related to Scream that we thought were pretty good. Although they can’t possibly match the beats of a $33 million blockbuster, they get by on what they have. But who needs money? If you’re talented and motivated anything is possible as proven by these filmmakers who are well on their way to the big leagues.

Take a look at the below films and let us know what you think. And while you’re at it, leave these young filmmakers a thumbs up, or leave them a comment to encourage them to create more films. Besides, where else are you going to see Ghostface vs. a Katana all set to a hip-hop soundtrack?

Scream Live (2023)

Scream Live

Ghostface (2021)

Ghostface

Ghost Face (2023)

Ghost Face

Don’t Scream (2022)

Don’t Scream

Scream: A Fan Film (2023)

Scream: A Fan Film

The Scream (2023)

The Scream

A Scream Fan Film (2023)

A Scream Fan Film
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Movies

Another Creepy Spider Movie Hits Shudder This Month

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Good spider films are a theme this year. First, we had Sting and then there was Infested. The former is still in theaters and the latter is coming to Shudder starting April 26.

Infested has been getting some good reviews. People are saying that it’s not only a great creature feature but also a social commentary on racism in France.

According to IMDb: Writer/director Sébastien Vanicek was looking for ideas around the discrimination faced by black and Arab-looking people in France, and that led him to spiders, which are rarely welcome in homes; whenever they’re spotted, they’re swatted. As everyone in the story (people and spiders) is treated like vermin by society, the title came to him naturally.

Shudder has become the gold standard for streaming horror content. Since 2016, the service has been offering fans an expansive library of genre movies. in 2017, they began to stream exclusive content.

Since then Shudder has become a powerhouse in the film festival circuit, buying distribution rights to movies, or just producing some of their own. Just like Netflix, they give a film a short theatrical run before adding it to their library exclusively for subscribers.

Late Night With the Devil is a great example. It was released theatrically on March 22 and will begin streaming on the platform starting April 19.

While not getting the same buzz as Late Night, Infested is a festival favorite and many have said if you suffer from arachnophobia, you might want to take heed before watching it.

Infested

According to the synopsis, our main character, Kalib is turning 30 and dealing with some family issues. “He’s fighting with his sister over an inheritance and has cut ties with his best friend. Fascinated by exotic animals, he finds a venomous spider in a shop and brings it back to his apartment. It only takes a moment for the spider to escape and reproduce, turning the whole building into a dreadful web trap. The only option for Kaleb and his friends is to find a way out and survive.”

The film will be available to watch on Shudder starting April 26.

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