THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOON (1990) Blu-ray review

The Dark Side of the Moon (1990) d. D. J. Webster (USA) (87 min)

While on a routine mission to repair a multitude of nuclear-armed satellites orbiting Earth in 2022, the crew of the Spacecore 1 are stymied by a mysterious malfunction that sends them drifting helplessly behind the moon and out of communication with ground control. Even more alarming, the ghost ship of the NASA space shuttle Discovery shows up on their scanners, despite having disappeared into The Bermuda Triangle nearly 30 years prior. Running low on supplies and oxygen, they decide to board the vessel where they encounter an array of literally unearthly horrors that could spell the end of Mankind.

SILENT NIGHT, DEADLY NIGHT PART 2 (1987) Blu-ray review

Silent Night, Deadly Night Part 2 (1987) d. Lee Harry (USA)

Despite sequel fever running rampant throughout the 1980s, the genesis of SNDN2 is surprisingly unconventional. Seems that producer Lawrence Appelbaum approached editor Lee Harry with the assignment of simply re-cutting the footage from the original 1984 flick and attempting to re-issue it under a different title, one without the stigma of the notorious ad campaign that led to protests by concerned parents and scathing reviews from top critics like Siskel and Ebert. Somehow or other, Harry convinced Appelbaum that it might be worthwhile shooting new footage and employ the original footage as flashback material, serving as a kind of “greatest hits” montage, which is exactly what happened. With this knowledge in mind, it’s easier to appreciate the fact that the first 40 minutes (yes, OVER HALF THE ACTUAL RUNNING TIME, not counting the ultra-slow ending credits) are comprised of pre-existing material which you more than likely already watched this holiday season.

THE UNNAMABLE (1988) Blu-ray review

The Unnamable (1988) d. Jean-Paul Oulette (USA) (88 min)

Adapted from H.P. Lovecraft’s short story of the same name, writer/producer/director Oulette offers a slight variation on the standard “monster in the old haunted house” saga, mostly by virtue of its source material. Set at our author’s favorite bastion of higher learning, Miskatonic University, students Joel (Mark Parra), Randolph Carter (Mark Kinsey Stephenson), and Howard Damon (Charles Klausmeyer aka Charles King) discuss the legend of the strange goings-on at the residence of suspected warlock Joshua Winthrop (Delbert Spain). It seems Carter’s ancestor was the priest who discovered Winthrop’s body with his heart torn out by a strange, “unnamable” creature whose image is supposedly burned into the glass of the attic window.