This may be one of the most epic release weeks of the year! Oh boy, do I love October! Not only is a new flick hitting the big screen (QUARANTINE), but an assload of hot titles hitting DVD. The monster movie JACK BROOKS: MONSTER SLAYER, the STD sequels FEAST II and JOY RIDE 2, and the unknown zombie flick DEAD COUNTRY featuring a quote by yours truly… even though I haven’t seen it yet. Go figure. And if that’s not enough, look for THE HAPPENING, PSYCHO (SPECIAL EDITION), HALLOWEEN (3-DISC EDITION), THE ORIGINAL FACES OF DEATH (30TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION), and Steven Segal’s KILL SWITCH. Like I said, one of the most epic release weeks in history.
QUARANTINE
Rated: R
Starring Jennifer Carpenter, Jay Hernandez, Columbus Short
Directed by John Erick Dowdle
Run Time: 1hr. 26min.
For a reality TV show about people who work while the rest of the world is asleep, reporter Angela Vidal and her cameraman, Scott, are assigned to cover a night shift with a pair of firemen at a Los Angeles fire station. After an uneventful evening, a 911 distress call in the middle of the night takes them to a small apartment building downtown. Police officers are already on the scene in response to bloodcurdling screams coming from an apartment on the third floor. Having stumbled onto a breaking story, Angela and Scott are determined to get it all on tape. Entering the apartment unit to investigate, they find an old woman in a nightgown, standing alone in the dark. She’s covered in blood, her breathing erratic and raspy. She seems sick. And when a policeman approaches to help her, she suddenly attacks–with her teeth. The group subdues the woman and tries to get help for the injured policeman. But when they attempt to leave the complex, they find that the CDC has quarantined the building. All exits are sealed and guarded by heavily armed men. Telephone, internet, TV, and cell phone access have been cut-off, and officials won’t give any explanation to those locked inside. The apartment complex and its residents quickly descend into panic. Trying to make sense of what’s happening, the inhabitants are forced to look to each other for help. Then there’s another scream from above. In the atrium lobby where everyone is gathered, a body falls to the ground from the third floor. And the attacks begin again. When the quarantine is finally lifted, the only evidence of what took place is the cameraman’s videotape.
JACK BROOKS: MONSTER SLAYER
Rated: R
Starring Trevor Matthews, Robert Englund, Daniel Kash
Directed by Jon Knautz
Run Time: 85 Min.
After witnessing the brutal murder of his family when he was just a young boy, Jack Brooks is left with an unquenchable fury. Now working as a plumber, Jack attempts to fix his Professor’s plumbing, only to unknowingly awake an ancient evil. Prof. Crowley becomes possessed and starts a slow, gruesome transformation into the depths of evil. Only then does Jack realize that he can t run from his past, and quickly discovers the true purpose of his inner rage.
FEAST II: SLOPPY SECONDS
Rated: Unrated
Starring Clu Gulager, Jennifer Wade, Diane Goldner
Directed by John Gulager
Run Time: 100 minutes
The monsters have made it into a small neighboring town in the middle of nowhere and the locals have to band with the survivors of the bar’ slaughter to figure out how to survive.
JOY RIDE 2: DEAD AHEAD
Rated: UnRated
Directed by Louis Morneau
Starring Kyle Schmid, Mark J. Gibbon, Nicki Lynn Aycox
Run Time: 91 Minutes
When four friends embark on a road trip to Vegas looking for fun and a few cheap thrills, they have no idea that they’re about to fall into a blood-drenched charnel house of tension, torture, and the darkest depths of pure primal fear! After their car breaks down in the middle of nowhere, they must find a way back to civilization. But their plan soon arouses the malice of Rusty Nail-a murderous, vengeful trucker with an insatiable appetite for gruesome mutilation and sadistic pain – and he’ll stop at nothing to ensure they pay their toll…one body part at a time!
DEAD COUNTRY
Rated: UnRated
Directed by Andrew Merkelbach
Starring Ted V. Mikels, Jacqueline Lovell, Christopher Shen
Run Time: 75 Minutes
When a space ship containing hazardous material explodes over a small rural town, a deadly virus is unleashed upon the population, turning them in to zombies. Only the alien being responsible for the terrible accident and a small group of survivors can stop the epidemic from spreading, but first they have to survive the experience.