M3GAN 2.0 (2025) - Universal Pictures

M3GAN 2.0
Universal Pictures

Original Release Date: June 27th, 2025
Written by Gerard Johnstone (screenplay & story), Akela Cooper (story & characters), James Wan (characters)
Directed by Gerard Johnstone
Starring Allison Williams, Violet McGraw, Amie Donald, Jenna Davis, Ivanna Sakhno, 
Language English (with subtitles available in English, Spanish, and French)

Buy it HERE from Orbit

by "Doc" Hunter Bush, MovieJawn Podcast Director and Staff Writer 

M3GAN 2.0 comes to 4K HD & Blu-ray from Universal Pictures. Franchise director Gerard Johnstone, who also contributed to the story here, helps to upgrade M3GAN from villain to anti-hero in this ambitious sequel. The Universal Pictures release looks and sounds great, but the bonus features, while enjoyable, left me wanting more.

The Movie Itself: 4 stars

When the first M3GAN (2022) came out, I heard a LOT of buzz about it. People were hyped. When I saw it a while after release, I was somewhat surprised: it was solid and very enjoyable, but not the kind of thing that I would get into such a tizzy about. Conversely, when the sequel dropped last year, I heard a much more modest response, even though I thought M3GAN 2.0 took some real chances and actually deserved more buzz. I love a Big Swing, and turning your killer robot doll horror franchise into a Terminator 2: Judgement Day homage is a pretty big one. Not to mention that it's done well.

But I'll back up. In the first film, we're introduced to Gemma (Allison Williams) and her recently-orphaned niece Cady (Violet McGraw). Gemma works in tech, designing robotics operating systems and artificial intelligence, and she is woefully unprepared to care for a child, let alone a grieving one. To that end, she introduces Cady to M3GAN (Amie Donald & Jenna Davis), her Model 3 Generative Android prototype, and things follow the Child's Play type of villain progression over the course of the film, with M3GAN becoming murderously obsessive about her friendship with Cady before eventually barely being defeated by Gemma and some of her other robotics projects.

In M3GAN 2.0, the franchise transitions M3GAN from Chucky to Terminator-style anithero. A government kill-bot (based on Gemma's works) goes rogue and eventually M3GAN is resurrected to help prevent it from achieving its ultimate goals which, without spoilers, will be bad for everybody. This rogue kill-bot, AMELIA (Autonomous Military Engagement Logistics and Infiltration Android) (Ivanna Sakhno), is just as powerful, crafty, dangerous, and insane as M3GAN but has the additional feature of: knowledge gleaned from hacking military databases. The plot ties in a pair of tech gurus (Jemaine Clement and Aristotle Athari, both approaching tech-bro douchebag performances from different angles and both doing a great job) and a shocking checklist of robotics & A.I. archetypes.

That aspect is one of my favorite things about the film: it functions almost like those multiverse / team-up films that are oh, so popular these days, but does so in a much more smooth and, ironically, organic fashion. Across the film's run-time, these battling A.I. robots cross swords (only occasionally metaphorically) with exo suits, futuristic eye-phones, neural chips, smart homes and home assistants, smart cars, BattleBots-style animatronics, and even a cameo appearance from Microsoft Office Assistant mascot Clippy! In addition to the robotics role call I've just mentioned, the choreography is pretty fantastic. It approaches the brutality of something "serious" like Timo Tjahtjanto's The Night Comes for Us, (2018) but keeps things poppy and accessible, like Timo Tjahtjanto's Nobody 2 (2025).

M3GAN, as a franchise, is focused on fun, and seems to approach that vague concept from a ''what's good for the goose is good for the gander'' perspective, changing things to take on grander ambitions, and keeping the cast and crew on their toes in the hopes that if they're all enjoying making the film, we will enjoy watching it. While M3GAN 2.0 didn't make as big a splash as the original, it's an infinitely more unexpected turn that deserves to be experienced. I hope they still make more of these films, and I hope I never know what genre they're going to explore next.

The Packaging: 3 stars

There's nothing to rave about in regards to the packaging here, but we shouldn't become so desensitized to reliable quality that we don't appreciate it. The Universal release comes in a black HD Blu-ray snapcase with a sleeve depicting M3GAN in bisexual lighting. The sleeve has a slight foil, reflective quality to it, which adds to the presentation. 

The Video: 4 stars

The film looks fantastic. Colorful, well-balanced, and appropriately saturated, the look of M3GAN 2.0 is dark the way a carnival at night is. Lots of neon lighting (the tech convention sequence especially), sleek, and shining design porn (the cars, the various buildings, etc.) abounds, but never at the expense of warmth or clarity.

The visual clarity works for and against the film at times. The production of M3GAN 2.0 utilized a mixture of animatronics and CGI face-replacement (in correlation to body doubles) to bring the characters of M3GAN and AMELIA to life and at times, you can tell. The super-clean visuals leave little room for even the briefest trip to the Uncanny Valley. On the other end of things: M3GAN and AMELIA are both supposed to feel uncanny, so those moments never broke my immersion, but some of the visuals are just smoother than others. In a film working with the constraints that this is (it's not ''low-budget'' by any means, but for its budget it's extremely ambitious), I think some rough edges are more than fair.

The Audio: 4 stars

The sound mix on this Universal release is pretty tops by my reckoning. This will sound like a very silly sentence, but there are a lot of sounds in this film, by which I mean: a lot is done with sound here. Setting aside your garden variety horror / action sonic choices--gunshots, yelling, combat, car engines, explosions, etc.--the M3GAN operating system hops between host systems a few different times, and sometimes these are audibly depicted via changes to her voice (notably, one feels like a direct homage to GLaDOS from the Portal games!) She also sings a version of Kate Bush's This Woman's Work in one hilariously bizarre moment, and there is a noted change in the sonorous quality of M3GAN's voice, which I think is a choice, made in world by M3GAN herself and not a mistake in the mixing.

My three-channel soundbar handled all of this very well, thanks to the Dolby Atmos mix. All dialogue was clear, and even the most sonically complicated sequences always felt balanced in a way that highlighted the appropriate aspects and allowed the story to continue on smoothly.

The Supplements: 3.5 stars

With supplemental material, I'm always looking for things that add context to my filmgoing experience: stories about the making-of process, behind-the-scenes anecdotes and/or footage, explanations of the effects work and the other crafts that went into bringing this film (whatever it may be) to life. There's definitely some of that here, but in my opinion, not enough. For instance, I would have loved a lot more info on the BattleBots-style animatronic (mentioned above) that was constructed by prop master Nick Komornicki!

According to the Droid DNA featurette, that thing needed, at time, seven puppeteers to operate it! I would happily have watched an hour on that process. I love practical effects, especially when they are to be utilized in conjunction with (and not as a rough draft to be replaced by) computer generated effects! I think that process is intellectually fascinating.

My blue-skying aside, I did enjoy the bonus features that are actually included. The action breakdown featurette (The Art of Slaying) was a lot of fun and I'd happily have watched an hour of that as well.

• Total Upgrade: Making M3GAN 2.0 (11:19) (HD)
• Droid DNA (7:39) (HD)
• The Art of Slaying (8:06) (HD)
• Scene breakdown: The Embrace A.I. Convention (5:05) (HD)

Final Thoughts: Highly Recommended

As someone who saw Terminator 2 approximately 50 times before I finally saw the original, I will forgo my usual "...but make sure to watch the first film beforehand" caveat. I think M3GAN 2.0, as a movie, whips ass while still holding its own. In a cinematic field increasingly overcrowded with tired concepts and threadbare franchise installments, it's genuinely refreshing to see one that embraces a fluidity and freedom to change. I could wax on about how that is representative of some of the themes, but that's not why you're here.

If M3GAN 2.0 is your introduction to the franchise, you'll have a great time. But you would be doing yourself a disservice if you didn't eventually go back and watch the first one, if only to appreciate how brave a stylistic change this film is. But either way, I strongly recommend M3GAN 2.0 and hope for future installments.

Universal Confluence Jones

I was watching Super Mario Bros. (1993) for the first time in a l-o-n-g time and I noticed something that is, in reality certainly just a production oversight, but if has fascinating implications if you think WAY too much about it, as it is occasionally fun to do:

That is a random extra in a location on a parallel world, wearing a denim vest with an image of Taz, the Tasmanian Devil from the Looney Tunes, on the back. In the '90s, the Looney Tunes were EVERYwhere and, if you know anything about the chaotic production of this movie, I'm sure somebody just figured "Nobody will ever notice this dude". Little did they anticipate that the future would bring us a Blu-ray release of this film, from Umbrella Entertainment, that looks incredible and actually made it possible to catch a truly inconsequential background detail.

That's the obvious answer, but if you think too much about things (which is sometimes quite fun to do, unless you start believing all your made-up b.s. and then you're Alex Jones and his ilk) you can extrapolate that maybe the denizens of the former Mushroom Kingdom are traveling to-and-fro between our world and theirs often enough that they're just buying Looney Tunes denim from the local K-Mart and wearing it around home as a flex.

There could also just be a few brave souls crossing the universal border to smuggle goods back in and sell them to certain customers of a more discerning taste.

OR. Maybe Taz is a universal construct. Maybe Taz exists across all realities, much like how various cultures and religions in the real world share stories that echo the Christ myth (and in multiple cases, pre-date it). Maybe the idea of Taz, a whirling dervish of appetite and chaos, is an avatar of something that exists in the collective unconscious of all beings across all worlds. Maybe "he" is out there in the primordial ether, waiting; hungry, salivating and spinning.

I apologize for the quality of the image, I just paused and snagged a photo with my phone. But I will not apologize for my crazy over-thinking and over-analyzing of totally meaningless background details in movies; it's too fun.

Also, the title of this post is a wrestling joke, iykyk.

LOS GOLFOS (1960) - Radiance Films

Los Golfos
(The Delinquents)
Radiance Films

Original Release Date May, 1960
Written by Mario Camus, Carlos Saura, Daniel Sueiro
Directed by Carlos Saura
Starring Manuel Zarzo, Luis Marín, Óscar Cruz, Juanjo Losada, Ramón Rubio, Rafael Vargas
Language Spanish (English subtitles available)

Get your copy from MVD Entertainment HERE

by "Doc" Hunter Bush, MovieJawn Podcast Director and Staff Writer 

The Movie Itself: Good

Los Golfos (The Delinquents) is a solidly made film, and just in a general way, as a supporter of the cause of film preservation, I'm glad it has been restored and made available, but as sometimes happens with older films, the conditions of its creation is almost more important than the film itself. The story of Los Golfos is as fascinating and inspiring as the story in Los Golfos.

Made in Spain during the regime of Francisco Franco (which began in 1939 and continued until his death in '75), Los Golfos' creation was viewed as a dissident act, not only for portraying life under a fascist dictator as anything other than a paradise, but also for what was shown. Once completed, the censorship board required that four cuts be made before the film was allowed to premier at Cannes. Director / co-writer Carlos Saura refused and, as punishment, after returning from Cannes, the censorship board number of demanded cuts had risen to ten before they would allow it to be shown in Spain. A further cut was made before before it could be shown on television there as well.

So what was so inflammatory? Los Golfos follows a group (debatably, they could be considered a 'gang') of young people living in a poverty that the government ignored both publicly and privately. The film opens with, I believe (*), Rámon (Luis Marín) robbing a blind woman's newsstand and running off with whatever money he managed to grab. Being shown that these young men may not be good people gives way to seeing how they live otherwise. Some can occasionally find work, but not all of them, and when push comes to shove, they will resort to some unsavory acts. But there is one bright spot of hope for them: Juan (Óscar Cruz) who dreams of becoming a bullfighter, one of the only ways to escape their situation. If Juan can get a sanctioned bullfight, and become a local personality, he'll be able to travel, and bring all of his friends along with him. 

(*) I'll be honest, I had a tough time figuring out who was who in this rather large group of guys. Characters wouldn't always be addressed by name in scenes where they appeared, so I was constantly taking notes on their actions & characteristics and trying to pair them to names that cropped up later. There's Rámon and Juan, but also Manolo, Julian, Paco, and Antonio. There's also a Chato which means "flat-nose", but I wasn't sure if that was a nickname applied to a perviously-named character, or a permanent nickname for one person, like having a friend everyone calls "Slim". Of course, there's also Visi, the lone female semi-regular member of the group, but she was a little easier to keep mental tabs on as the only gal.

It turns out it isn't exactly complicated to get a bullfight organized: you just need to pay a lot of money (20,000 pesetas, which was the currency in Spain until 2002) to a guy to get the permits and secure the bull, then you have to get out there a distribute flyers and spread the word. Of course, to get this money the fellas (and Visi) lie, cheat, and steal which inevitably leads to bigger and bigger trouble.

The Packaging: Excellent

I love the look of Radiance Films releases. They use a slightly more heavy-duty clear snapcase than your average Blu-ray, which is always nice, and the reversible cover is fantastic. On one side is a pair of black-and-white images from the film: the front shows five of the boys walking together with a bridge in the background, out of focus, while the back in a mirror image of that, with the focus instead on the bridge rather than the boys. After watching the film, it became obvious that what I initially thought was an interesting stylistic choice is actually a commentary on Los Golfos being as much a story about the place (and time) as it is about the characters.

The reverse features a vintage-looking illustrated image of three of the young men deep in conversation, depicted against a red background in stark black lines with pale yellow highlights. It's very striking.

There's also a handsome booklet with an essay from Dr. Mar Diestro-Dópido offering even more insight on Carlos Saura's career during and around the making of Los Golfos, reproductions of reports on the script for the film, and an essay from Javier Rellán and Patricia Uceda on the film's restoration process.

The Video: Excellent

I loved the look of Los Golfos. Direction aside, the black-and-white cinematography is gorgeous and the restoration really does justice to it. I was very aware at all times of the textures of everything: corduroy pants, scarred walls, faded wooden doors, painted bricks, frayed denim, the chrome accents on the hood of a truck; all of them were just so incredibly tangible and tactile.

There's some grain present, but it feels natural and doesn't detract at all. The night scenes have more visual noise, but there was a disclaimer at the beginning that made it sound like this film had seen some rough times, which, combined with lower light level issues in general, makes any distraction feel if nothing else, well-earned.

I would be remiss if I did not mention Carlos Saura's direction, which honestly cannot be ignored. Saura was a photographer before moving on to directing film, which gives him an incredibly strong sense of visual composition. The shot choices in Los Golfos are then incredibly beautiful and impactful and convey a lot of emotion.

The Audio: Good

I didn't truthfully have any great problems with this release, but if you're a serious audiophile, the at times very obvious ADR might bother you, I guess. For those unaware, ADR (automatic dialogue replacement) is when lines of dialogue are recorded later and placed into scenes, usually because the dialogue recorded during shooting, if there even was any, isn't of a clear enough quality. While the ADR in Los Golfos can be glaring here and there, I must have gotten used to it because I forgot all about it pretty quickly.

Otherwise, the audio mix was lovely. There's a lot of casual Spanish guitar that plays throughout a lot of the film, especially early on, that just sort of meanders along in the background without ever really drawing much attention to itself. There's a few scenes in crowded bars or dancehalls that made good use of my three-channel soundbar to make the rooms they were in sound realistically large and inhabited. I didn't encounter any volume or clarity issues at all.

The Supplements: Excellent

I always say that what I personally look for in supplemental / bonus material is context, and the features on Radiance's Los Golfos release are a treasure trove of context. Two in-depth interviews, both original to this release, provided a great deal of backstory (much of which I've briefly touched upon above), and there is a whole feature showcasing the cuts demanded by the censorship board. If you're someone who also just loves freebies, there are two of Carlos Saura's short films included as well.

• Interview with author Esteve Riambau (22:17)
• Interview with curator Ehsan KhoshBakht (17:11)
• Censored scenes (12:57)
• La Llamada (The Call) (1955) (7:04)
• La Tarde Del Domingo (Sunday Afternoon) (1957) (33:42)

Final Thoughts: Snag it at a Yard Sale

Los Golfos is a fun watch at times, even if the characters are being forced into less than admirable acts, but you'll never shake the feeling that capital 'T' Trouble is out there, waiting for them. You're right of course, and when it finds them, it's bad and only gets worse. The performances feel very grounded and the societal tensions are all too real. This could easily be compared to any more recent examination of troubled young manhood (even something like Saturday Night Fever mirrors aspects found here) or gritty, street-level crime drama (the story here could easily sustain one season of an award-winning HBO drama) even without any understanding of the era's politics.

One last caveat I'll offer to potential disc-purchasers is that the film ends with footage of an actual bullfight, up to and including the death of the poor animal. Bullfighting is an important part of Spain's cultural identity, and I mean no disrespect in any way when I say I would rather not have to see that myself. The disc begins with a disclaimer about the restoration. I just wish I would have gotten a heads-up about the actual on-screen animal death.

Again, no judgment. I respect this aspect of Spain's culture and know that it wouldn't be done this way now, and additionally, I respect the statement that this death makes; the pall it casts over the events we've just watched. But it did ruin my night. All I'm saying is: while Los Golfos is a tremendously engaging and evocative film, and one that deserves to be seen and understood, be prepared for that finale.

FLAMING BROTHERS (1987) - Eureka Entertainment

Flaming Brothers
Eureka Entertainment

July 30th, 1987 (Hong Kong)
Written by Wong Kar-Wai, Jeffrey Lau
Directed by Tung Cho 'Joe' Cheung
Starring Chow Yun-Fat, Alan Tang, Patricia Ha, Jenny Tseng, Yin Tse
Language Cantonese w/English subtitles

Buy it HERE from MVD

by "Doc" Hunter Bush, MovieJawn Podcast Director and Staff Writer 

The Movie: Good

As a film, Flaming Brothers is perfectly serviceable and extremely well-made, even if on paper it seems unremarkable. Orphans Chan Wai-lun (Alan Tang) and Cheung Ho-tin (Chow Yun-Fat) came up together from hustling on the streets as children to running their own Triad-adjacent hostess club, but now local boss Kao (Yin Tse) wants them to start taking on more dangerous duties. When they refuse, they find themselves marked for death and end up teaming with other gangsters on Kao’s hit list in an attempt to take control of the territory. The whole thing begins and ends with incredibly violent confrontations. It’s what happens in between that truly sets Flaming Brothers apart.

Whereas previously the operatic and supernatural Wuxia genre had ruled the cinematic roost, then-recent political and social changes in China had led to an interest in crime films. The genre would eventually become known as Heroic Bloodshed, and have its style largely solidified by John Woo through films like A Better Tomorrow 1 (1986) & 2 (1987), The Killer (1989), and Hard Boiled (1992), and Ringo Lam through his City on Fire (1987), Prison on Fire (1987), and School on Fire (1988) films. But while it was still finding its footing, many films emerged attempting to capitalize on the crime craze.

Flaming Brothers is most certainly one of those films, but with the benefit of hindsight, it’s a unique specimen. The middle section of Flaming Brothers sees Ho-tin reconnect with Ka-Hsi (Patricia Ha), an acquaintance from childhood, and they fall in love. When it becomes apparent that things are serious, Wai-lun encourages them to leave the city and start new lives together while he enters into a tumultuous relationship with Jenny (Jenny Tseng), a singer with whom he has previously been involved. 

This focus on the emotional cores of its two leads makes Flaming Brothers noteworthy at the very least. My biggest complaint with the film is that it’s right on the edge of being Too Much Movie. The crime storyline is complex enough, and the romance has enough points of dramatic tension to each have been their own film. This leaves Flaming Brothers charging breathlessly from important moment to important moment. On the plus side, you’re never bored. On the other hand, it feels like very few things apart from the indulgent violence have time to land. Ho-tin and Ka-Hsi feel like they get married on their third date for instance. This is the danger of making what is effectively a crime epic, and bringing it in at comfortably under two hours.

Co-written by Jeffrey Lam and future Criterion Collection auteur Wong Kar-Wai, Flaming Brothers' attempt to split its focus between two fully loaded storylines leads to a somewhat uneven viewing experience: A tragic melodrama sandwiched between two thick-cut slices of gleeful, bloody violence. But by taking these chances, it solidifies its place as an outlier in a somewhat overcrowded subgenre.

The Packaging: Excellent

This release includes a booklet with an essay from filmmaker, writer, and film historian Camille Zaurin that does an excellent job at giving this a cultural context. He lays out the hallmarks of the Heroic Bloodshed genre, its evolution from earlier Wuxia films, and Flaming Brothers' place within that larger tapestry quite well.

As is typical of Eureka Entertainment's Blu-rays, this comes in one of the sturdier, wider cases, which is always nice. In addition to that, the cover art is a recreation of the original poster art, depicting Ho-tin holding a gun and screaming with a dramatic pillar of fire in the background. There's also a slipcover featuring art from Time Tomorrow showcasing both brothers preparing for violence. It all makes for a very handsome addition to your collection.

The Audio + Video: Good

Flaming Brothers falls right into the sweet spot for me where both the audio and video have been, I believe, very lovingly restored, but they haven't been sterilized. There are still sonic and visual hallmarks of the era this movie comes to us from: minor film grain adds texture, not distraction, and the audio just plain sounds different. There is a roundness to the dialogue recordings, and even though they're effectively cleaned up, you can still get a sense of the noise in the original audio tracks, mostly present on some harsh 's' sounds.

Special Features: Average

What I look for in my special features, for the most part, is context. I like to learn about the environment the film grew from, and what its cultural footprint may be. To that end, the interview with director Joe Cheung was the most impactful for me. I've been a fan of Wong Kar-Wai (In the Mood For Love (2000), Chungking Express (1994), others) for years and finding out that he came up working for Cheung is fascinating. As were, honestly all of Cheung's insights into the filmmaking process.

Beyond that, the locations feature and the alternate credits were fine. The trailer, unsurprisingly, showcases a lot of the action and, as a bonus, since it has not been restored, it showcases the extent to which the video and audio have been cleaned up.

• CFK on Flaming Brothers' locations (31:36)
• The Ambassador: an interview with Joe Cheung (45:04)
• Alternate Credits (3:13)
• Trailer (2:18)

In Summary: Buy it on sale

Flaming Brothers is a fascinating outlier to the more well-known aspects of the wave of crime cinema coming out of Hong Kong through the '80s. Elements of comedy, and obviously romance, as well as a very profound bromance, are all eclipsed by the sheer madness of the shootouts. Blood and bullets fly, friends and foes alike die by the dozens, and in the end, no one truly wins. It's borderline nihilistic. As such, it might not be for everyone, even for fans of Asian genre cinema, but I think it definitely has more working for it than against it.

THE .44 SPECIALIST (1976) - Kino Lorber / Kino Raro

The .44 Specialist (a.k.a. Mark Strikes Back)
Kino Lorber / Kino Raro

Original Release Date Oct. 26th, 1976 (Italy)
Written by Dardano Sacchetti story by Lucio De Caro
Directed by Stelvio Massi
Starring Franco Gasparri, John Steiner, Marcella Michelangeli, John Saxon
Language Italian (English subtitles available)

Buy it HERE from Kino Lorber, or HERE from Diabolik

by "Doc" Hunter Bush, MovieJawn Podcast Director and Staff Writer 

The Movie: Average

I am by no means an expert in Italy's Poliziotteschi crime subgenre. I really only discovered it on a previous Disc Dispatch (1976's Live Like a Cop, Die Like a Man) and I was cautiously optimistic. I mention this only to say that The .44 Specialist didn't really blow me away like that previous film did, and to couch this in: maybe there's something about it that is intrinsically Poliziotteschi that I'm just not getting.

We're introduced to undercover cop Mark (Franco Gasparri) hanging around a cafe, acting as bait to infiltrate the criminal underworld. He provokes a fake arrest in order to come in for a debriefing without blowing his cover. Luckily, this false arrest brings him to the attention of just the people he was debriefed about: terrorists Paul (John Steiner) and Olga (Marcella Michelangeli). In the film's opening scene, we witness them, along with sniper Hans (Claudio Zucchet), execute some dignitary while riding in his car, despite a police escort. They managed to escape, though Hans was gravely injured.

This is where Mark comes in. Initially brought on by Paul and Olga to care for the obviously dying Hans while they conduct other illicit business around the city, before long Mark is hired as Hans' replacement, a decision underlined by Paul unceremoniously executing Hans (which itself leads to an hilarious bit of Weekend at Bernie's-esque shenanigans a full 13 years before Bernie's hit theaters!). Then we're off on an international terror spree.

My issues are manifold: first, and maybe it's just that I missed something, but I had NO IDEA this was the third film in what is known as the Mark the Narc Trilogy (after Mark the Policeman a.k.a. Blood, Sweat, and Fear and Mark the Policeman Shoots First, both from 1975). This technically doesn't matter, as the story is stand-alone, but I never felt like I had any idea who Mark was as a character. Perhaps there is more to him established in the first two films or perhaps not, but importantly: I just can't know.

Relatedly, stuff just seems to happen to/for Mark that doesn't have anything to do with his police prowess or any notable skills. In one instance, he's picked up by hot lady stranger Isa (Malisa Longo) while trying to hail a cab and taken back to her apartment for casual sex. This delay means he is not in his hotel and thus avoids being killed in some vague ambush bloodbath. Similarly, he sees his car being towed just before he enters a clandestine meeting, and again narrowly avoids being murdered along with everyone else, both times purely through chance.

None of this is any fault of Gasparri's. He's incredibly naturally charismatic in the role, but the character is a cipher, and a phenomenally lucky cipher at that. Now, if that was a trait of Mark's that was previously established in the two earlier films, then so be it. I might still be somewhat annoyed by it, but maybe it would have grown on me. Here, it just means I have no real reason to care about what's happening because Mark will be fine and without even engaging with the danger in any meaningful way. Like a virile, laid-back Mr. Magoo.

The Packaging: Average

This is a bare-bones Blu-ray through-and-through. It's the usual slim, blue case, includes no booklet or anything, and features a single-sided cover. The illustration features Mark with his era-appropriately large hair and larger bell-bottoms, falling backwards firing his gun on the tarmac of an airport (a moment that, unless I missed it, does not happen).

It's fine, but not especially attention-grabbing.

The Audio + Video: Good

On a technical quality level, The .44 Specialist is more than adequate. Though it's obviously a product of its era, with regards to film grain and sonic fidelity, I always find that those minor "imperfections" add to a film's charm unless they're so egregious that they distract from the finished product. That's not the case here at all. Aside from arguably looking a little overcast visually sometimes, I had no issues with the look.

From an audio standpoint, my only complaint is that the film's main bit of score largely doesn't work. It sounds very reminiscent of the theme from TV's Taxi (1978-1983) and works perfectly well for when Mark arrives in a new location and we're treated to some casual sightseeing. It does not, and in fact could not, also work when Mark goes for a meeting with his handler Altman (the great John Saxon) whom Mark thinks might be setting him up. The tones of these two scenes are just too different for one piece of music to work equally well in both. Composer Stelvio Cipriani (Piranha II: The Spawning [1982]) is incredibly prolific, and he did a fine job on this piece of music, but it should not be used in all of the places that it is.

Special Features: Bad

The only special features aside from the commentary track from film historian Rachael Nisbet are two movie trailers, one of which is for this very movie, and neither of which is for any other films in the trilogy. While Rachael Nisbet delivers a very informative commentary track, as she normally does, I was pretty underwhelmed with these features.

• Trailers
• The .44 Specialist (3:22)
• Body Puzzle (1:12)

In Summary: Snag it at a yard sale

As a film The .44 Specialist is fine but not especially memorable. As a disc, it feels incomplete. This should really have been packaged and released with the other two Mark the Narc films, had a couple of special features exploring the franchise, its crew and its cast (Franco Gasparri's story for instance, is akin to a Poliziotteschi Behind the Music) and really just given the fans or any curious parties their money's worth. The film may stand on its own without any direct ties to the previous two, but the disc most definitely does not.

THE KILLING TIDE (1997) - VHShitfest / Vinegar Syndrome

The Killing Tide
VHShitfest / Vinegar Syndrome

Original Release Date 1997
Written by David Dubay
Directed by David Dubay
Starring Steve Jones, Benedetto Sorrentino II, Carl Lamb, John St. James, John McKinnon
Language options English (English & Japanese subtitles available)

Buy it HERE from Vinegar Syndrome, or HERE from Diabolik.

by "Doc" Hunter Bush, MovieJawn Podcast Director and Staff Writer 

The Killing Tide comes to Blu-ray from Vinegar Syndrome partner label VHShitfest. Writer / director David Dubay moved up from film advertising to producing and eventually this, his debut and only feature. VHShitfest's release of The Killing Tide features a very respectable video transfer and audio package with an excellent selection of bonus features.

The Movie Itself: Excellent

I love big, dumb action movies. To be fair, I enjoy a LOT of different genres and styles of film, but over-the-top action films will always have a special place in my heart. There are, of course, good ones, but I have a special affinity for the Big Swings. Weird vanity or passion projects that have more chutzpah than professional polish. The Killing Tide isn't quite one of those, but it certainly scratches the itch for me.

Writer / director David Dubay began his film career in advertising, working for a company responsible for I Spit on Your Grave (1978) and The Boogeyman (1982) before transitioning to producing films like Brainwaves (1982), The Devonsville Terror (1983), and The Boogeyman 2 (1983) all with Ulli Lommel directing. Lommel, who had come up as an actor under Rainer Werner Fassbinder shared Fassbinder's ethos of getting a film made cheaply with Dubay, who brought that mindset home to Michigan where he made The Killing Tide.

When a local land deal causes the corrupt cops, lead by Sheriff Cody (Carl Lamb) to clash with local crime boss Bruno Kotarski (John St. James), with hitman-for-hire Frank (Steve Jones) and his pal Benny (Benedetto Sorrentino II) caught in the middle and given good reason to wipe everyone involved off the board. Bullets fly, bodies fall, cars flip, a helicopter crashes, and numerous unconventional methods of dispatching one's enemies are utilized from, including one notable high-rise hanging with a firehose. The whole thing is awash in casual nudity, crass language, and great, bad, hard-nosed dialogue, all set against the backdrop of a citywide 4th of July celebration!

Part Steven Seagal vanity rampage, part low-budget stunt show and part cartoonish power fantasy, The Killing Tide is a genuinely entertaining independently-made film that is so under-seen I don't think it even qualifies as a cult classic... yet. VHShitfest is truly out here doing the (dark?) lord's work trying to spread the word about hidden gems that went completely overlooked during the DVD era. In the case of The Killing Tide, I believe it only received a Japanese VHS release.

I cannot understate how ambitious a film Killing Tide is. I love Big Swings in films, and this is awash in them. There's a really fascinating interview with the director included in the bonus features that answered a lot of my questions, but they still "crash" a "helicopter" in this flick! I will not explain why certain of those words are in quotes except to shrug and say: Movie Magic. I hope that piques your interest enough to take a chance checking it out.

The Packaging: Good

This is a solid release, offered in the style and up to the expected quality of your usual Vinegar Syndrome partner label releases. The case is of the slightly wider, sturdier, clear variety, allowing for you to appreciate the double-sided cover. On one side is an image of a blonde woman lying facedown with poker chips spilled across her back as well the silhouettes of two figures hanging upside down. The reverse is similar, with the image of the woman with the poker chips, but also a Polaroid of Frank standing over a figure lying prone next to a helicopter. This cover also includes some Japanese writing, so I'm guessing it is either recreating or referencing the cover of the Japanese VHS release.

The Video: Good

When viewed in a void, you might think my rating is a little high. This is obviously a low budget VHS-era film, with some, but importantly not all, of the flaws that come with that. I was expecting much worse, or rather, I didn't know what to expect, so I was preparing myself. I was pleasantly surprised, however! Since this restoration comes directly from the original master, there are no tracking issues, no ghosting, none of that.

The visuals are pretty sharp, all things considered, and the colors are quite vivid in a seedy, neo-noir way. By contrast, the Japanese VHS version (included in the bonus features) looks closer to what I was imagining (though, still, notably better than some things that come across my desk). The opening sequence is almost aggressively green and I was initially worried about the color balance, but I think it just WAS that green along the river at that time of year (in fairness, it was July).

The Audio: Good

As with the visuals, I was prepared for much worse, but by and large the audio here is very well-preserved. There's a certain dustiness, a muffled sound to some of the dialogue, but nothing is ever unintelligible. Well, not from an audio quality standpoint. The dialogue still has that vintage, 1990s tough-guy silliness to it: "I got ugliness on my eyes, sheriff. I got their corpses on my brain. My face feels like shit, sheriff." and my three-channel soundbar delivered them all with aplomb.

A special shout-out demands to be made, to Mark Rivera and Tony Beard who performed several original songs on the soundtrack, notably "Rescue Me", which plays in its entirety over the opening credits sequence. My note refers to it as "...legally not Phil Collins" which isn't exactly right, but y'know: first thought, best thought. The synths are less energetic, but the commitment to plaintive crooning and evocative imagery is close.

Before moving on, I just want to clarify that these songs, but especially "Rescue Me" are bangers! A thing can be of a quote/unquote "imperfect" quality and still be really damned satisfying. I am still humming "Rescue Me", as I write this!

The Supplements: Excellent

I was very pleased with the supplemental options offered here and that was before I checked them out! The interviews with writer / director David Dubay and actor Benedetto Sorrentino II were both really illuminating about the experience, especially in the places where they disagreed. But regardless, I went into the features after my viewing of the film having really enjoyed the experience, and I came out of them kind of loving Dubay, his crew, and the people of Macomb County, Michigan who by all accounts were really on-board with a local boy making a movie.

Dubay's historical documentary / local tourism Clinton River Chronicles is included, as well as the Japanese VHS version which seems, aside from some differences in quality and the presence of Japanese subtitles, like exactly the same movie? As far as I could tell, all the violence, language, and nudity present in the main release was still there, which, having no real knowledge of international VHS release guidelines at the time, I wasn't sure would be the case.

• Commentary track with actor Steve Jones
• Interview with writer/director David Dubay (56:17) (HD)
• Interview with actor Benedetto Sorrentino II (26:35) (HD)
• Location Tour (5:15) (HD)
• Clinton River Chronicles (1995) (1:06:23) (SD)
• Japanese VHS Version (1:24:41) (SD)
• Original Trailer (1:58) (SD)

Final Thoughts: Highly Recommended

I'm right on the cusp of giving this the highest possible recommendation. Not because it is the pinnacle of cinematic achievement or anything, but because it deserves to be seen by as many people as possible. Certainly, for fans of action cinema, or film preservation, I would say this is a Must Watch.

For normies (no disrespect meant) I still highly recommend this as a testament to what one man can do when given a small support system (which, in this case, necessarily includes the local government). I know I knocked the quality of certain aspects, but I'm just, as folks used to say, keepin' it real. In my estimation, The Killing Tide is an instant hangout classic that demands to be shared with some buddies.

THE LAST HORROR FILM (1982) - Troma Entertainment

The Last Horror Film
Troma Entertainment

Original Release Date Oct. 9th, 1982
Written by Judd Hamilton, David Winters, Tom Klassen
Directed by David Winters
Starring Joe Spinell, Caroline Munro, Glenn Jacobson, Don Talley
Language English (subtitles available)

Get your copy HERE from MVD

by "Doc" Hunter Bush, MovieJawn Podcast Director and Staff Writer 

The Movie Itself: Excellent

More than most labels, a Troma release is always something I kind of have to steel myself for. No disrespect to them at all, I'm a fan (Lloyd Kaufman even once told me he loved me), but with Troma, much like a certain much-discussed box of chocolates, you don't always know what you're gonna get (*). Sometimes you get gleefully gross, intentionally button-pushing, gory, silly, horny, fever dream films like The Toxic Avenger (1984), Class of Nuke 'Em High (1986), or my personal favorite: Tromeo and Juliet (1996). Sometimes you get a lesser-known, overlooked horror film that Troma have just picked up to release. If I'd done even a cursory look into the background of The Last Horror Film, I'd have known what I was in for, but I prefer to go into these disc reviews as blind as possible; it's just more fun. 

(*) This initially came down to whether the film was being made in-house by the Troma team and the creatives in their orbit, or was an independently made film that they just decided to distribute and release. Obviously, as Troma's goopy, radioactive shadow has grown over the years, more films are being independently made that ape the Troma style, which muddies the water a little bit. But I digress.

All of which is to say that The Last Horror Film is the latter: independently made on the heels of the success of Maniac (1980) which also starred Joe Spinell as a sweaty, bug-eyed weirdo and was produced in part by Judd Hamilton. Maniac made such a splash that Hamilton was asked to get another film under production ASAP. Though he wanted to work on something more in the science fiction genre, he was essentially forced into playing in the horror space again. Obviously, reteaming with Spinell was the smart move, and locking down the beautiful Caroline Munro, former Bond girl in The Spy Who Loved Me (1977), makes perfect sense.

In The Last Horror Film (also known as Fanatic), Spinell plays a movie-obsessed NY cabbie Vinny who buys himself a ticket to crash the Cannes film festival so he can convince scream queen Jana Bates (Munro) to star in his debut feature. Once at the festival, murders begin happening, all with Bates at the center: her husband, various industry professionals, etc. Obviously, Vinny must be behind it all... right? The film plays with the audience's understanding and love of horror movies to get a little bit meta, using the movie-within-a-movie format as a way to showcase creative kills and keep viewers guessing.

A high concept, low budget slasher, The Last Horror Film knows what its audience wants and in my opinion it really delivers. The kills are creative and nasty--Munro herself, in clips from some of the films she's starred in as Bates, dies via electrocution in a hot tub and by having her face blowtorched off--and Vinny's numerous fantasy / dream sequences look fantastic; all smoke, abstract light, and bizarre imagery like a melting Academy Award or Vinny confronting the pretentious director within himself!

Filming guerrilla style at the Cannes film festival lends the film a lot of production value (and casual nudity), as does a third act location change to a gorgeous castle villa! Personally, I'm a fan of fake movies in movies, and The Last Horror Film has a handful. All are a lot of fun and utilized to keep the momentum up throughout the film's runtime. But so much of the film's success really falls on the shoulders of Caroline Munro and the late, great Joe Spinell. Munro weaponizes her beauty to play a put-upon actress being driven to near madness by shocking acts of violence at nearly every turn and Spinell gives another fearlessly grimy performance as a degenerate who nevertheless loves the same kind of movies we do. Just, hopefully, not the same way.

The Packaging: Average

This is slightly wider, and therefore slightly sturdier blue snap case with a single-sided cover and the disc included. It's perfectly fine, but I'm not a fan of how busy the cover is. It depicts a frame of celluloid with Jana screaming while in a shower, and it has been scratched out, as happens in the film. This is all fine, but then there is a LOT of text. A banner advertising "TROMATIC SPECIAL EDITION", the Troma Entertainment credit, AND the logo, a pull quote from Fangoria, then the title, some cast & crew bonafides and finally a legend advertising "Featuring the music of DEPECHE MODE".

Y'all. It's one song. It's a perfectly well-suited Depeche Mode song--Photographic off of their debut album Speak & Spell--and it's utilized well in the film, but did we really need to advertise that on the already-crowded cover? For what it's worth, the back is also crowded, but as is the case with a lot of modern physical releases, the majority of that real estate is taken up with the hefty list of special features. I won't really complain about that for obvious reasons.

The Video: Good

The transfer here looks great! In transfers, occasionally you'll find some instances of the clean-up/restoration process adding extra visual noise (an overall sandy texture), especially in scenes shot in low light. Here, while there is some film grain which is to be expected, even the lower-light scenes look well-made and well-preserved. The colors really pop, and the more abstract visuals are all the more exciting for it.

Whether we're on gritty New York City streets, the topless beaches of the French Riviera, a glamorous gala, or a sun-drenched villa, the entire film has a seedy nervous energy to it, translated to the audience through the frequently active camera work. It's not Paul Greengrass levels of motion anything, but there were frequent instances of the camera roving about.

But my personal favorite visuals from the film are these sequences that kind of function like interstitials, of someone isolating a single frame of celluloid film featuring the next victim, and marking it--either scratching them out or circling them. It's just a great break from the action and tension.

The Audio: Good

This is a very solid audio transfer. I have a three-channel soundbar and at no point did I notice any issues; anything that took me fully out of the experience. There are, to be fair, moments where a bit of dialogue was obviously ADR'ed (Automatic Dialogue Replacement, meaning dropping in some dialogue recorded at a later date, usually because the necessary dialogue wasn't properly recorded or audible) but that's nothing unusual, given the era and genre.

Fun fact: aside from that one Depeche Mode song, the most interesting thing about the soundtrack is that it features seven songs written and performed by Jesse Frederick and Jeff Koz. Both men would go on to some acclaim in the television theme song realm, with Koz creating the song Faces of the Heart, which was the opening theme for General Hospital from 1993-2004. Frederick meanwhile wrote (with Bennett Salvay and show producer Jeff Franklin) and performed Everywhere You Look, the theme song to Full House. As a TGIF kid and a mid-to-late '90s soap opera viewer, it turns out BOTH of these songs are very familiar to me.

The Supplements: Excellent

The number one thing I look for in the bonus features for a physical release is: context. I like to be able to learn as much as I can about the situation(s) that a particular film was created in. In that regard, this release of The Last Horror Film is a home run and then some. There are three commentary tracks--two with (as he is described) "Joe Spinell's Best Friend", Luke Walter and one with Caroline Munro and film critic and Frightfest co-founder Alan Jones--and two illuminating interviews. Producer / co-writer Judd Hamilton's interview especially gave great insight into the film's origins, while Spinell's personal friend Sal Sirchia's interview is more about his relationship with Spinell during the last two years of Spinell's life.

There is also a ton of Troma-related material, so if you're unfamiliar with their whole deal and aesthetic, you'll definitely be more familiar after checking these out. I would like to draw special attention to the 5 minute feature Highlights from Tromadance (which is Troma's version of Sundance). The clip really highlights Troma's whole ethos of never giving up. Make your movie, your way; keep trying to get eyes on it; make it happen. I know Troma gets a lot of flak for their overall house style, and while I understand it (and could write an entire piece on the studio's evolving aesthetic), they're nothing if not inspirational.

• Commentary track with Joe Spinell's Best Friend Luke Walter
• Commentary track with Caroline Munro and Frightfest's Alan Jones
• New commentary track with Luke Walter
• Like a Father Figure: Sal Sirchia remembers Joe Spinell (21:11)
• My Last Horror Film Ever! Archival interview with producer Judd Hamilton (18:58)
• The Last Horror Film: New York and Cannes Locations (14:24) (HD)
• Mr. Robbie (a.k.a. Maniac II) (short film featuring Joe Spinell) (8:05) (SD)
• The Last Horror Film Trailers:
• Trailer 1 (as Fanatic) (0:32) (SD)
• Trailer 2 (as Fanatic) (0:31) (SD)
• Trailer 3 (0:58) (SD)
• Tromatic Extras:
• Highlights from Tromadance 2015 (5:21) (HD)
• The Return of Dolphin Man (4:48) (SD)
• Kabukiman's Cocktail Corner (9:44) (HD)
• Troma Trailers:
• Return to Nuke 'Em High - Vol. 1 (2013) (3:24)
• Return to Nuke 'Em High - Vol. 2 (2017) (1:49)
• The Toxic Avenger (1984) (3:32)
• Class of Nuke 'Em High (1986) (3:23)
• #Shakespeare’s Shitstorm (2020) (3:14)

One last thing I want to mention, and I've put it here because I guess it's sort of an unadvertised bonus feature(?), but when you start the movie, a brief intro (4:08) plays starring Troma founder Lloyd Kaufman. In it, he briefly talks up the film you're about to see before taking a pill that instantly changes his sex. He then hits the streets, playing into Troma's image as somewhat regressive, and deliberately provocative, before having Lloyd get told off by some guys (including Troma regular and former The Last Drive-In bandleader John Brennan!) who inform him that "It's 2015, dude. (Cross-dressing) is no big deal. Get over yourself!"

To be clear: after the introductory bit, none of this skit has anything to do with The Last Horror Movie, it's just Troma being Troma, and while it's a little clumsy and a little messy, the heart of the piece is in the right place. Just wanted to mention this because it comes out of nowhere and was an ...odd note to open on.

Final Thoughts: Highly Recommended

I'll always enjoy this variety of '80s slasher. They might not have a ton to say beyond the titillation, but not every ride at the amusement park can be The Hall of Presidents. Some are a rollercoaster, built purely for giddy thrills, cheap scares, and copious toplessness ...Okay, my analogy fell apart near the end there, but you get what I'm saying.

This is worth watching for Joe Spinell alone. The man is a particular kind of character actor / genre legend--he also appears in the first two Godfather and Rocky films, Sorcerer, and Taxi Driver for starters--and with any performer like that, I find watching them get to play the lead an endlessly entertaining use of my time. But beyond that, between the locations, the clever meta story, and the creative death scenes, The Last Horror Film offers a lot of entertainment for slasher fans.