Blu-ray & DVD: The Digital Dread Report for 9/22

There are only two Tuesdays left before October hits, and while the Blu-ray & DVD Releases will be fewer than in the previous three weeks, there are still some great titles heading our way.

*Be sure to click on the pics to order yourself some flicks.

Deep in the Louisiana bayou sits the ramshackle Starlight Hotel, destination of choice for those who like to check in but not check out! Presided over by the bumbling, mumbling Judd (and his pet croc which he keeps in a large pond out front), the patron of this particular establishment may seem like a good-natured ol’ Southern gent – but he has a mean temper on him, and a mighty large scythe to boot…

Oozing atmosphere from its every pore (the entire film was shot on a sound-stage at the famous Raleigh Studios, which lends it a queasy, claustrophobic feel) Eaten Alive matches The Texas Chain Saw Massacre for sheer insanity – and even draughts in Chain Saw star Marilyn Burns as the terrorised woman-in-peril, alongside William Finley and Mel Ferrer.

Tobe Hooper's first film after The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and the first Horror movie that Robert Englund ever starred in, Eaten Alive is a cheesy 70's Cult Classic that involves a guy feeding people to his pet crocodile. This has never been one of our favorite movies, but we're curious to see what Arrow Video has done with the transfer on this one, and for us, it's worth getting just to hear a young Robert Englund say "Name's Buck... and I'm rarin' to fuck!"

• Brand new 2K transfer from the original camera negative.
• High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) and Standard Definition DVD presentations.
• Optional English SDH subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing.
• Audio commentary with co-writer and producer Mardi Rustam, make-up artist Craig Reardon and stars Roberta Collins, William Finley and Kyle Richards.
• New introduction to the film by director Tobe Hooper.
• Brand new interview with Hooper.
• My Name is Buck: Star Robert Englund discusses his acting career.
• The Butcher of Elmendorf: The Legend of Joe Ball – The story of the South Texas bar owner on whom Eaten Alive is loosely based.
• 5ive Minutes with Marilyn Burns – The star of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre talks about working on Eaten Alive.

Based on Jeffrey Konvitz's best-selling novel, this contemporary gothic chiller features jump-out-of-your-seat special effects and an incredible assemblage of stars including Ava Gardner, José Ferrer, John Carradine, Burgess Meredith, Deborah Raffin, Chris Sarandon, Eli Wallach and Martin Balsam. Alison likes her eccentric new neighbors, so it comes as a shock when she's told that, except for a strange old priest, she's the only tenant. Director Michael Winner comes up with something to terrify everyone in this spin-tingling exercise in supernatural suspense.

This is one of our favorite Horror movies to come out of the 70's, and is one that is nowhere near as widely known as it should be.

This is a genuinely creepy movie (one of its best scenes being a part of Bravo's 100 Scariest Movie Moments), it's got all kinds of nudity and depravity in it, and it boasts a stellar cast that includes Chris Sarandon, Christopher Walken, Jeff Goldblum, Beverly D'angelo, Tom Berenger, Ava Gardner, Burgess Meredith, Eli Wallach, and about 20 other classic actors.

This is a Day One Purchase for us, as it should be for anyone who loves old-timey Supernatural Horror.

• NEW 2015 High Definition transfer of the film from interpositive! (We can now confess that this is why we delayed the release a month. Thank you for understanding when we moved it.)
• NEW Audio Commentary by actress Cristina Raines (FYI – She admits that this is the first time she has ever watched the film!)
• NEW Audio Commentary with writer/producer Jeffrey Konvitz.
• NEW interview with assistant director Ralph S. Singleton.
• Audio Commentary with director Michael Winner.
• Theatrical Trailer & TV Spots.
• Still Galleries – movie stills, press photos, posters and lobby cards.

Amidst the splendor of rural New England sits Falburn Academy, a boarding school for young, impressionable and in some cases, troubled girls. Isolated from the outside world, Falburn sits near the woods – a sinister cluster of trees that appears to act as a protective wall. Heather Fasulo (Agnes Brucker, The Aviator) is the school’s newest student. After setting fire to a forest, rebellious Heather is sent to Falburn to provide her with a sense of stability. Heather’s increasing nightmares prove to be more than homesickness when she discovers that the woods hold a chilling and terrifying secret.

Another obscure movie that doesn't get the love that it should, The Woods is a creepy, atmospheric little story in the vein of Suspiria, about a private girls academy that is run by witches. Bruce Campbell, Patricia Clarkson, Agnes Bruckner, and Rachel Nichols head up the cast, and Lucky McKee directs the hell out of this one. 

Definitely worth checking out if you like your scares organic and genuine.

There's not a lot down here that we're interested in buying this week, but that doesn't mean there aren't still some solid releases to be had.

• The Dead is a solid and unique zombie effort, but for $24.99, this 2-Pack set is just way too overpriced... especially considering that The Dead 2: India really sucked. 
• Arrow and The Flash ought to please DC fanboys. 
• Lisa is a serviceable little Thriller from 1990 that might be worth picking up at some point, but not for $19.99. 
• The Rocky Horror Picture Show is one movie that we never really cared for, but for fans of the oddball musical, this 40th anniversary Blu-ray is about as good as it gets. 

On the DVD Front this week...

• There's not much doing on DVD this week, although Red Road is a pretty good show, and we'd probably give Containment a watch. 
• Everything else, as always, is a crap-shoot.