Earlier this year Turbine Media Group released a new blu-ray
edition of the movie SCHLOCK. At the time I wrote about it and will present
that same review here. Afterwards I’ll let you know what to expect with this
new release of the same movie from Arrow Films. So here is what I had to say
then:
Movie fans know well the name of John Landis. From the seventies
to the nineties he made some of the funniest films ever created. While we all
may recognize movies like ANIMAL HOUSE, THE BLUES BROTHERS, TRADING PLACES and
AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON, few know the very first movie Landis made when
trying to break into the business. That film was available in some truly bad
releases on disc and to my knowledge never on blu-ray. That’s all about to
change.
Back in 1971 a young Landis, discouraged by the Director’s Guild,
went to see a bad movie called TROG. Thinking he could make a similar movie but
better that’s what he set out to do. Two years later the film was done, he
found a distributor and SCHLOCK! was unleashed on the world.
The movie opens to a town filled with dead citizens and a trail of
banana peels. It’s the work of the dreaded “banana killer”. Tracking clues the
police find…nothing. The local on the spot newsman reports from the scene
ending his piece by telling folks to stay tuned for today’s afternoon movie
“See You Next Wednesday”.
Local teens walk the area where the banana killer was last seen
before heading to the local dance that night. They discover a cave and search
it only to confront the banana killer, an ape of some sort. Two escape with
their lives and bring back the police as well as a local professor who
hypothesizes that this isn’t the work of a killer but the missing link that’s
been sought for centuries, the schlockthropolus.
I could provide more of the plot but that’s pretty much all you
need to know. Yes this movie is a spoof of all of those long gone monster on
the lose films combined with the ape movies that were prevalent at one time.
It’s a formula that Landis would go on to use to perfection with his next film
KENTUCKY FRIED MOVIE. He was responsible for the script here and many of the
laughs show his love of old movies using plenty of slapstick style comedy in
scenes as well as some witty dialogue.
Made for just $60,000 it shows but that was his intent as well. He
wanted to show that he could direct a movie on his own having been working in
the business for several years at this time. The production value for being
such a low budget film is better than many that have long since been forgotten
by directors with much less skill. That Landis could pull this off is a feat in
itself.
The film also served as a kick off to a friendship and working
relation that lasted for a vast number of Landis films. Looking for someone to
create the man like ape for him he couldn’t afford anyone he knew in the
business. A suggestion sent him to a home where a young man was living with his
parents and also trying to break into the business but in make-up effects. His
name was Rick Baker. The same Rick Baker who would transform David Naughton
into a werewolf for Landis in AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON.
Landis has said that the movie isn’t very good and that more than
anything it was a learning experience for him. But the fact is it’s better than
he might recall. No, it’s not a blockbuster film by any means but it has its
moments. More importantly when placed in viewing order with his other films you
can see the burgeoning talent that is there as well as watch the progression of
his abilities from one film to the next starting with this one.
That was then, this is now. At the time that release was
limited to just 2,000 copies. My guess is they had the rights which were ending
and knew this one was on the way. So let’s take a look at the difference
between the two.
To start with this version from Arrow Films is a blu-ray hi
definition release with a 4K restoration of the film from the original camera
negative making it the best quality picture you’ll find. All that’s missing
from the previous release is Landis take on
the film from Trailers from Hell. But the other extras are all there as well as
some more. Included in the extras are an audio commentary track featuring
Landis and Baker, a new video interview with author and critic Kim Newman,
“Birth of SCHLOCK” a 2017 interview with Landis, an archival interview with
cinematographer Bob Collins, the US theatrical trailers from 1972, 1979 and
1982, US radio spots, a reversible sleeve featuring original and newly
commissioned artwork by Graham Humphreys and for the first pressing only an
illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by Joe Bob
Briggs.
I’ve been able to view both and I’ll have to admit that
Arrow Films is the way to go. That’s no surprise as Arrow remains a force to be
reckoned with when it comes to bringing life to movies like this one. They
continue to be one of my favorite companies releasing movies these days, even
more so than some of the major studios with new releases. With titles in the
condition movies like this arrive in and the extras that they include it’s easy
to see why.
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