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SEE YOU AT THE BASE AWARDS
BARBIE ON TOP AS HORROR LOOMS
TORMENTED NIGHT OUT FOR ARROW…
AND ANOTHER DUE AS CARRIE RETURNS
CRITERION DOES LA BAMBA…
…AS SPIRIT OUTLINES PROGRESS
DOCTOR WHO CELEBRATES ON PHYSICAL MEDIA
BFI LANDS CYMANDE DOC
CRUNCHYROLL INKS PRIME DEAL
GET INVOLVED WITH FILM STORIES' PHYSICAL MEDIA COVERAGE
TRAILERS OF THE WEEK
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It was a good week for… Horror, with Hellraiser and Talk TO Me leading a shocking number of titles as Halloween approached…
It was a bad week for… Anyone who's got to work on Friday post-BASE awards…
We’ve been watching… After missing it at LFF, we finally got to see the completely wonderful Scala!!! documentary from the former BFI home entertainment supremo Jane Giles alongside Ali Catterall, it's a truly amazing doc charting the history of the London fleapit that also served as Palace's office in the early days of the distributor's life, especially for its video arm. Out in January, huge recommend… It’s the BASE Awards tonight, so all we can say is, if you’re going – enjoy yourselves. Commiserations to the losers and congratulations to the winners. As ever, The Raygun will be there – more than 30 years and counting of these trade association events – and we will, as long as things go according to plan – be live tweeting during the awards themselves to ket you know who’s picking up what. And stay tuned for a special edition of The Raygun celebrating the winners next week… As ever, we’ll be approaching winners for comment, if you fancy further celebrating, then please email us your comments to the usual address as soon as the hangover’s worn off. See you at the bar, or roaming around somewhere afterwards, or possibly on the streets of Camden and Chalk Farm, trying to find a late drink…
Meanwhile, as we go into the event, an interesting week in the Official Film Chart, with the physical release of Barbie helping the glamorous team back to the top of the charts and, as the release noted: “The Greta Gerwig-directed, record-breaking blockbuster saw its release on DVD, Blu-ray and 4K UHD last week, and as a result, leapfrogs from Number 3 back up to Number 1. With 51 per cent of its sales this week made up of physical copies, the film still has a strong showing on digital downloads, too.”
Two notable entries into the Official Film Chart came in the shape of horror new and old, as Arrow’s Hellraiser Quartet of Torment boxset and a more recent entry into the genre, this year’s shock sensation Talk To Me from Altitude, both making a show, with further horror both new and old (The Exorcist and Lionsgate’s excellent Cobweb) both making a showing.
More on Altitude’s Talk To Me in our next newsletter, but last week saw us venturing to New Cross, south east London, where Arrow Video had found a suitably sleazy venue to launch its mammoth Hellraiser Quartet box set, a title that, with its die-cut packaging, wonderfull looking films complete with an excellent raft of extras and accompanying book packed with even more on Clive Barker’s horror franchise. It was – and its a rarity to say this kind of thing these days – what we’d call a proper old-fashioned video industry event, complete with loads of familiar faces, from FrightFesters to assorted journalists and industry faces and, in a refreshingly healthy all-in-it-together attitude, more than a smattering of other boutique labels, imprints and contemporaries of Arrow. The twi-floor venue was packed out and musical entertainment came in the form of the heaviest metal you’re likely to hear in some time. A big shout out to Arrow and agency Fetch for their efforts, which, judging by initial sales for the box set, appear to be paying off for the sumptuous package. Comment on the event came from Arrow’s head of marketing Louise Buckler who said: “With Halloween just around the corner, we were so proud to unleash HELLRAISER QUARTET OF TORMENT. Available as a deluxe physical edition on Blu-ray and 4K UHD and also on digital and ARROW-Player.com, the first four films in the series are loaded with extras and restored for the perfect accompaniment to your Shocktober viewing. To celebrate the success of our release (our store exclusive Chatterer 4K UHD edition is now sold out!) we hosted a launch event at the iconic New Cross Inn. Two-piece noise rock powerhouse KULK kicked off proceedings, anarcho-punk SUBDUED keep the energy going, and INHUMAN NATURE’S Chris provided some late-night DJ antics with a suitably HELLRAISER themed set. A huge thanks to the New Cross Inn and their staff, Real Life Presents for booking the bands and everyone that joined us for a night we won’t soon forget! We just hope the morning after wasn’t too hellish…” (Editor’s note: it was)
And speaking of Arrow, the event took place just a handful of days before the last Friday of November, when the company, as is standard procedure at this time of the month, unveiled its next batch of titles. Just one for January, but what a film it is, as legendary Stephen King adaptation Carrie gets the 4K treatment and suitable Arrow style. It lands on the 21st, and as the announcement noted: “The release includes commentaries and visual essays, a wealth of interviews and archive featurettes, and comes in limited edition packaging, with a 40-page perfect bound book, a fold-out double-sided poster, six collector’s postcards.”
The globally-renowned Criterion imprint, which paved the way for many of today's boutique labels and has been pioneering in the field of deluxe releases since the days of LaserDisc (younger readers should ask tech-savvy people over the age of 50 if they haven't heard of it) is now releasing titles through Spirit, as noted here a few weeks back, with the first through the new distribution deal now in stores. And it has just unveiled its two titles for January 2024, and what a belting brace they are. ,First up on the 15th of the month are 15th is a 4k restoration of rock biopic classic La Bamba, which stars Lou Diamond Phillips as Ritchie Valens, teen idol who died tragically young, and this is followed at the end of the month with a 4K restoration of classic 90s fare in the shape of seminal road movie Thelma & Louise, available on both UHD and standard Blu-ray. The restoration has been approved by director Ridley Scott himself and features new extras and commentaries and the input of the noted director himself. Commenting on the January titles and Criterion thus far in the UK,
Outlining both its January releases as well as how it’s working so far under Spirit’s stewardship, the company’s Sarah Stanley said: “We are kicking off 2024, with two absolute classics, first off is the Ritchie Valens biopic La Bamba. Followed closely by one of my all-time favourites, Thelma and Louise released on 4k ultra HD and Blu Ray. Fans in the UK (and the whole of the Spirit team) have been desperate to see this released on 4k over here, so this is very exciting for us. We only announced the release last week and already pre orders are looking strong. We are overjoyed with the reaction and launch of our partnership with Criterion at the start of October. The response we have received has been out of this world and with fabulous sales to boot. After Hours kicked us off early October and has blown our forecasts out of the water. The fans have been particularly responsive to our 4k releases which is fantastic to see. We then released Tod Browning’s Freaks last week and again really pleased with the sales we have received thus far. The year just keeps on giving, with some fantastic releases still to come. Bringing us One False Move and The Last Picture Show, as well as Charlie Chaplin’s classic The Circus. The real cherry on top for us ends the year with Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio on 4K UHD and Blu-ray, its jam packed with new content that everyone will want to see. Exciting times!:
This week has seen a flurry of Doctor Who coverage as the Timelord prepares to celebrate his 60th anniversary as a mainstay of British television (those of us who’ve been around a few years will remember his 30th anniversary on VHS, the 40th on DVD and the 50th on Blu-ray). And accompanying the news of the three episodes due to air on consecutive Saturdays on November 25, December 2 and 9 – which see David Tennant back once more as the Doctor and Catherine Tate as Donna – was an announcement on BBC Studios’ home entertainment release. This, available in Steelbook, DVD and Blu-ray editions, complete with disc-exclusive extras. The three shows also see guest stars such as Neil Patrick Harris, Yasmin Finney, Miriam Margolyes, Jemma Redgrave and many more. Harris plays the Toymaker a character last seen in the 1960s, with the three episodes entitled The Star Beast, Wild Blue Yonder and The Giggle. Comment came from BBC Studio’s head of sales for consumer products Rob Crowe who said: “It’s always fantastic to have a new Doctor to get excited about, and never more so than when that means the return of David Tennant, Catherine Tate, and showrunner Russell T Davies. These three Specials are sure to be popular with fans old and new, and a big seller for us in the lead up to Christmas.”
The BFI is poised to unveil its home entertainment Q1, with more details on our next newsletter, but in the meantime, ahead of that, there were a brace of notable acquisitions announcements that we thought were worth of more attention. The BFI, as well as releasing scores of homegrown films, international world cinema classics, long forgotten shorts and more, is also quietly developing a reputation as a distributor putting out some fine music documentaries and films, from last year’s Lawrence of Belgravia to this year’s restoration of ska revival and 2 Tone classic Dance Craze to Brit acid house epic I Am Weekender this year. And there’s another on the way too in the shape of a documentary outlining British funksters Cymande, aka the best band you’ve never heard of. Getting It Back: The Story Of Cymande charts the rise and fall of the band, who are hugely respected in America during the 1970s as musical pioneers, but lack of interest in the UK saw them eventually quitting the business. Successive generations from soul revivalists, rare groove fans and hip-hop and rap artists around the world meant that while everyone had heard of them, few knew the true tale. The documentary changes all that and, after airing to rapturous reviews at London Film Festival in 2022, it is now being released by the BFI in 2024, with a Blu-ray following hot on the heels of a theatrical release. The film, a genuine feelgood tale, has been such a success that it has helped inspire a new wave of interest in the band who will be touring next year. Also form the BFI, the organisation has further announced a mammoth retrospective celebrating the life and work of legendary director Werner Herzog, including a theatrical release for a restored The Enigma of Kaspar Hauser, which marks its 50th anniversary next year. More pertinently, it has also acquired a documentary looking at the 81-year-old’s lengthy career in the shape ofThomas von Steinaecker’s Werner Herzog: Radical Dreamer. This will open in the UK at cinemas in January and follow on Blu-ray on February 19 2024. The retrospective and accompanying press interest is certain to create huge interest in the director once more, paving the way for the doc’s home entertainment release.
Japanese animation streamer Crunchyroll, owned by the mighty Sony (it’s a joint venture between US-based film arm Sony Pictures and the Japanese Sony Music company Aniplex) , is to see its service being among those offered by Prime Video . The distribution deal initially sees the service being offered through Prime Video Channels in the UK, US, Canada and Sweden and will rill out globally in the following months. Crunchyroll now joins the likes of Shudder, BFI Player and more after it inked the deal with Amazon. It boasts more than 24,000 hours of anime across 46,000 episodes and more than 1,300 series and films. “Crunchyroll offers an anime adventure for every kind of fan. From sports to romantic comedy, horror and action to slice-of-life, even the anime-curious can get immersed in our library,” said Terry Li, EVP of emerging business, Crunchyroll. “We look forward to welcoming new fans into the anime community through our launch on Prime Video Channels.” “Prime Video already offers an unparalleled collection of premium entertainment, including third-party channels so customers can enjoy their favourite movies and series directly on Prime Video,” said Matt Cohen, head of content acquisition and partnerships, Prime Video Channels. “With the addition of Crunchyroll to Prime Video Channels, Prime members can now easily stream anime content on Prime Video.”
The next issue of the ever-excellent Film Stories magazine is looming and The Raygun's Tim Murray is covering physical media in depth again, with features and loads of reviews. To get involved and have your product covered, get in touch at the usual address… 
TRAILERS OF THE WEEK
Music, Maestro…
Apes. Good
Heard very good thing about this…
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