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DEAD & BURIED (Blue Underground) Director: Gary A. Sherman. Hacktors: James Farentino, Melody Anderson and Jack Albertson. The latter died before the movie finished production. Head Count: Tag-line: 'The creators of Alien... bring a new terror to Earth' has been the longstanding one. This release adds: 'It will take your breath away. All of it.' Death Toll: Hard to say. They keep comin' back to life. Cutting Remarks: I'm gonna start sounding like a broken record here, but it's so fantastic to see old horror movies coming out in shiny new DVD boxes, complete with extras and new interviews. 'Dead & Buried' has always been one of my favourite movies, due in part to its unforgettable opening sequence and its overall atmosphere. There's something about the town of Potter's Bluff that is genuinely macabre and unsettling.          The dependably rugged James Farentino is the hapless cop Dan Gillis, trying to figure out why corpses keep turning up here and there, and in some cases vanishing. The death effects are often spectacular in their nastiness, although interestingly director Sherman reveals in his audio commentary (one of three!) that he added a lot of gore at the insistence of the distributor. A lot of scenes were apparently also changed around, but even the slightly disgruntled Shusett has to admit that 'Dead & Buried' hasn't turned out too badly at all.          Oh, by the way, did I mention the beginning? Well, the ending's great as well. Most Memorable Demise: Hard to choose, but the hypodermic needle in the eye is the hardest to watch. Especially for the recipient. Look Out For: Robert 'Freddy Kreuger' Englund in an early role as Harry. Killer Quote: "Dan, I'm dead. Please bury me" - one of our hero's nearest and dearest makes a bizarre plea. DVD Details: This is a value-for-money two-disc set. The soundtrack is Blue Underground seemingly now-traditional mono/Dolby Surround 2.0/Dolby Surround 5.1/DTS 6.1 selection, while the screen ratio is widescreen 1.85:1/16:9. On the first disc, besides the movie (duh!) and the audio commentary trio (the second being with co-writer/co-producer Ronald Shusett and actress Linda Turley; the third with cinematographer Steve Poster), you get the theatrical trailer and a poster/still gallery. The latter stills, in all honesty, aren't much good without accompanying text/audio explanation. The bonus disc offers a nice featurette with Stan Winston about the specifics of the movie's FX, plus Robert Englund recollecting the movie's place in his career. Then co-writer Dan O'Bannon pops up to be a little bit pompous about horror movies, although ultimately likeable. Nice bow-tie, too. Release Date: Out now in the States. [Check it out at Amazon US] [Check it out at Amazon UK] [Reviews Menu] [Home] © Copyright Slasherama 2002-present