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‘The Slumber Party Massacre’ Trilogy Coming to DVD!
Stay up all night with the films that put a new twist on the slasher genre. Along with Halloween (1978), Friday the 13th (1980) and Prom Night (1980), Slumber Party Massacre (1982) helped define the slasher film ethos of the 1980s. Put together by first-time director Amy Holden from a script, titled “Don’t Open the Door,” by feminist author Rita Mae Brown (Rubyfruit Jungle), the film was an immediate hit for Roger Corman’s New World Pictures, eventually spawning two sequels. Here, for the first time, all three Slumber Party Massacres are brought together in one DVD set, due to drill its way into your heart on Oct. 5, 2010 from Shout! Factory, in association with New Horizons Picture Corporation!
The 2-DVD set includes The SLUMBER PARTY MASSACRE: Special Edition, SLUMBER PARTY MASSACRE II, and SLUMBER PARTY MASSACRE III, as well as such killer all-new bonus features as a three-part documentary, “Sleepless Nights: Revisiting The Slumber Party Massacres,” a photo and poster still gallery, and an essay on the Slumber Party phenomenon, “Close Your Eyes For A Second … And Sleep Forever.” A must have collection for all slasher fans and collectors of Roger Corman’s Cult Classics, own the complete set for $24.97 SRP.
Thanks in part to a brilliant marketing campaign pushing a feminist angle because the film was written, produced and directed by women, the story of a girls’ basketball team drilled to death at their celebratory slumber party became a staple in mom-and-pop corner video stores of the 1980s. Bulked in with the “best” of the early slashers, The Slumber Party Massacre (1982) had a secret weapon: a wicked little brain and a dark sense of humor layered between the three nude scenes and one very brief sex scene. The girls take on the masculine roles (playing sports, working as telephone repair women, basketball coaches, carpenters and always willing to fight back against the “Driller Killer”), while the somewhat effeminate boys made the stupid decisions typically played out by women in the subgenre. Additionally, the boys died more violently on screen than their counterparts.
In The Slumber Party Massacre, 18-year-old high schooler Trish (Michelle Michaels) decides to invite her high school girls’ basketball teammates over for a slumber party. What she doesn’t know is that the girls will get an uninvited guest — Russ Thorn, an escaped mental patient and murderer of five people who’s weapon of choice is a portable power drill.
The only sane survivor of the first incident, Courtney (Crystal Bernard of “Wings” fame), dreams of the driller killer returning in the first sequel, Slumber Party Massacre II (1987). She can’t help shake the feeling that she and her friends will be viciously tormented by the killer. Her nightmare becomes reality when the killer returns, reincarnated as an evil rocker with a deadly guitar, who goes about slaying more teens.
The final, installment, Slumber Party Massacre III (1990), is a reimagining of the first film, but with more gore and violence. After a relaxing day at the beach, a group of teens decide to have a slumber party. Their boyfriends predictably show up to scare them, but there is something much scarier lurking in the shadows as the group starts getting attacked by an unknown killer with a fixation on drilling.
Disc 1
The SLUMBER PARTY MASSACRE: Special Edition (1982)
Disc 2
SLUMBER PARTY MASSACRE II (1987) and SLUMBER PARTY MASSACRE III (1990)
Special Features:
Editorials
Arrow Video’s ‘Stranger Things: The Complete Series’ is the Ultimate Collector’s Box Set for Fans
Available as of today from Arrow Video is a new box set that might arguably be the definitive way to watch Netflix’s blockbuster series Stranger Things.
At the very least, Stranger Things: The Complete Series puts emphasis on “complete.” That’s evident in its special features alone.
Special and Deluxe editions of Stranger Things: The Complete Series are available for purchase now, featuring an array of exclusive bonus content, including bloopers, interviews with the cast and crew, and behind-the-scenes featurettes, designed for the ultimate Stranger Things experience.
The Deluxe Edition is presented in custom packaging featuring newly-commissioned artwork, alongside a wealth of extra material: a 148-page booklet, exclusive art cards, a Hellfire Club patch, double-sided posters for each season, and much more.
This limited-edition release features all 42 episodes of the show’s five season run on more than 25 discs, all housed in a set featuring gorgeous artwork by Juan Ramos. “We always dreamed that Stranger Things could be owned in its entirety,” said Matt and Ross Duffer, “not just as a collector’s set, but as a way to preserve the show for decades to come.”
Their imprint looms large over the release, including writing in the 148-page book that also includes original design sketches, concept art, and storyboards. All of which would warrant the steep price tag alone for the diehard Stranger Things fan, but Arrow Video upped the ante with collectible surprises as well. Arcade patches, stickers, Hellfire Club dice, and an extremely detailed map of Hawkins, Indiana- double-sided to account for the Upside Down, of course – are among the highlights for this all-ages set.
Adorn your walls with posters representative of your favorite season! That’s also an option with this set’s offerings.
All of which to say that it’s rare for Netflix to make the jump into physical media, and they’ve enlisted Arrow Video to give it the best possible treatment. They certainly brought utmost care and attention to this release. As such, both the standard and deluxe sets come with steep price tags that start at $160 depending on format. While that’s likely a deterrent to the casual viewer, it’s more than worth it for fans.
It may be less convenient than hitting play on Netflix, sure, but there’s a lot to be said about the potential for quality upgrades to your viewing. No spotty internet or compression issues to be found here when it comes to the 4K Ultra HD or Blu-ray discs.
That’s really the biggest takeaway from this release: the untapped potential still of Netflix’s streaming library of originals that are ripe for similar treatment. Series and films that could receive Arrow Video levels of treatment on physical media.
Fans of Stranger Things can venture into the Upside Down one last time this spooky season at Halloween Horror Nights, but there may be no better way to ring in the series’ tenth anniversary than a rewatch with this expansive, well-curated box set.
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