Zombi 2 (ShriekShow 25th Anneriversy DVD)

[JohnnyZombie]

I just bought this the other day. The picture looks 100 times better than the Anchor Bay release and the extra supplement disc is nice.

Here's the rundown.

Picture:

100 % better than the original Anchor Bay dvd release and all of the old Vhs copies. I must admit, I had my doubts when I saw the opening scene where the doctor shoots the zombie and says "Tell the crew the boat can leave now", because it looked just as dark and grainy as the old versions, but if you can make it past that part the film looks beautifully crisp and nearly perfect. The colors are gorgeous and for the first time ever, everything is bright and observable. For instance: when the tourists go to the doctor's house to find his wife and stumble upon a group of zombies eating her flesh, everything is bright. I also believe that there are a few extended scenes in this one, because on first glance I noticed new things I had never seen before. But I haven't compared both this version with the Anchor bay dvd, so it could just be my imagination.

Overall the picture is great, but because of the opening shots, I cant call it perfect. 9 1/2 out of 10.

Sound:

Features 5.1 Dolby Digital surround sound in both the English dubs and original Italian soundtrack, and 2.0 stereo and mono for both languages. The 5.1 really shines in this dvd. If you thought that Zombie is not a film where you can fully enjoy the technology of surround sound with, then think again. There are several scenes where the surround sound feature comes in handy--particularly during the final shootout with the zombie ambushers. This 5.1 mix is very different from the Anchor bay mix. I first noticed this during the shark attack scene where the guy takes a few shots at it with the rifle. You can hear differen't shots coming from each speaker in the room at a time. It really heightened the effect.

Overall: 10/10

Supplements:

This is the best part about the Shriek Show dvd, but I also found alot of faults with it. You only get a few supplements with the Anchor Bay and Blue Underground dvds, but the Shriek Show dvd contains a whole other disc filled with stuff. On the first disc you get supplements that contain the original Italian trailer for Zombi 2, an interview with Captain haggerty (the actor who played the fat boat zombie. this is a very fun interview), and an audio commentary from actor Ian McCulloch, which is just recycled from the Anchor bay dvd and isn't very entertaining or informative. On the second disc you get an interview with one of the make-up designers, a poster and still gallery, a trailer index for all of Shriek Show's other zombiesque titles, and a 90 minute long documentary for Zombi 2.

It may sound like a lot of supplements (and they are!), but they are still lacking. For instance: in the poster and still gallery you get mostly lobby cards and posters, but not on-set photos or merchandise like you would get from Anchor bay or blue underground. The shriek show dvd also lacks the american trailers and tv and radio spots that came with the Anchor bay release. These are a treat and it sucked that it didn't come with them. I can't complain too much though, because I have the anchor bay dvd, but I pity the poor saps who will not be able to enjoy these cool advertisments. Another thing that you wont find on this shriek show dvd are interviews with other cast members (besides 2 or 3).

But my biggest complaint with the supplements is the poor direction and composition done by those at shriek show. If any fan knows Shriek Show, you know that most of their supplemental features only contain interviews with select members of the cast and crew, and not much of anything else. Well, the same applies here. Which is fine, except that they are poorly executed--especially in the 90 minute documentary on disc 2. The 90 minute documentary is nothing more than about 2 dozen interviews with the cast and crew (mostly crew) from Zombi 2. This may sound good, but there are a few problems. 1.) almost no one speaks english, so you'll have to read subtitles for the next 90 minutes, and they disappear fast. I found myself constantly rewinding the video so I could read what they had to say. It would've been nice if shriek show offered a dubbed track, but that would've cost more money on their part. 2.) the interviewees do not have much to say. And who can blame them? Its an obscure film that they made 30 years ago during a five day work week. Just asking someone to remember a week in their lives from last year can be a bit of a challenge. The information that they give is still good though. 3.) the documentary is poorly executed. I mean, who wants to read subtitles for the next 90 minutes? As far as I know, this was the first time that Shriek show attempted to put a dvd documentary together, and their amaturity clearly shows. It would have been nice if they followed the direction of most dvd distributors by providing a narrator, or images from the poster and still gallery in between interviews. They do add scenes from the film and pictures of lucio fulci, but that's it. Other than that, its mostly boring sit-downs with the cast members. Anotehr complaint I have is that during the "cast" chapter of the documentary they mention very little about the cast. They mention a few things about the man who played the doctor and Al Cliver, but that's it. They dont mention Auretta Gay, Ian McCulloch, Olga, or Tisa Farrow. And they show one little glimpse of an interview with modern Al Cliver (an italian who speaks english), but its very short. I found myself asking why the interview was so short, and then I found my answer in the end credits when they state that the clip was borrowed from another company. But you would think that if another company was able to get an interview with Al Cliver, then surely Shriek Show should be able to get an interview with him; not in this case. I wonder if the even tried.

Another thing that you get on the bonus disc is a guitar performance from Dakar (actor who played "lucas" in the film). It doesn't seem like much, but according to shriek show, he didn't remember anything about the film and the only thing he could offer was some songs. Which is okay by me.

In the end I would have to say that shriek show did offer a lot more than Anchor Bay and Blue Underground, but I walked away with the feeling that they could have provided a little bit more.

8/10

[ChopperCannibal]

I bought this movie on DVD for about $11. But that's because I bought the Blue Underground DVD instead of Shriek Show. Because I'm told it's actually better quality than the Shriek Show. By just a teeny tiny bit.