STUDIO: Universal
RELEASE DATE: September 30, 2008
STARRING: Various
WRITTEN BY: Various
DIRECTED BY: Various
FEATURES: All Three Titles Feature U-Control - Enjoy Interactive Features While You Watch

So, you got a Blu-Ray player and you want to put it to good use. With junk like Deception, 88 Minutes, and Made of Honor filling "New Releases" shelves in the Blu-Ray section of your favorite store, what's a movie fan to do? "Well, I want to buy some new Blu-Ray movies, but I don't want to buy bad movies." One of the coolest things about the end of the format war between Blu-Ray and HD-DVD is that all kinds of classics, especially from the studios that were on the losing side of that battle, are hitting the format. This week, Universal gets a jump on the onslaught of gore-filled releases that will come your way in the next 30 days and releases a killer three-pack of flicks in what they call the "Halloween Starter Pack". The films themselves are all well-worth your time with one definite classic and two of the most underrated modern horror films of the last decade. The actual Blu-Ray releases are a mixed bag with some definite enhancements over previous releases but some shocking omissions and disappointments. One by one...

DAWN OF THE DEAD: UNRATED DIRECTOR'S CUT (2004)

I was truly surprised by Zach Snyder's remake of Dawn of the Dead. I absolutely adore George A. Romero's original masterpiece and hold as one of the top ten horror films of all time. Snyder's doesn't match that classic but it does a shockingly good job at what it sets out to do. Fans who were disappointed or turned off by Snyder's Dawn of the Dead missed something - it's not the same movie as the original. Snyder's not even trying to make the satire that Romero did of a culture that has turned us all into mindless zombies. Instead, Snyder went the action route and made a kick-ass blood fest of a movie. Well-paced, tightly edited, and incredibly enjoyable, I'd take Snyder's Dawn of the Dead over any of the Resident Evil films when I'm looking for a zombie-action fix. If you're like me, you thoroughly enjoyed the Ultimate Edition DVD release with its cavalcade of special features, but Universal has shockingly chosen not to port all of the extras from that release to this one. That's right - you can't simply upgrade and sell your old copy on eBay. Why on Earth would I want two editions of Dawn of the Dead (or any movie) on my shelf? But that's what I'm going to have to do. If you don't own Dawn of the Dead, here's how you can decide what to buy - if video and audio are the key to your home viewing experience, pick up the Blu-Ray. The audio track in particular is stunning. If you're into special features, despite the nifty U-Control that allows you to watch featurettes mid-movie, stick with the standard DVD.

GEORGE A. ROMERO'S LAND OF THE DEAD: UNRATED DIRECTOR'S CUT (2005)

All of the special features make it over from the standard DVD release of George A. Romero's Land of the Dead to the gorgeous Blu-Ray edition. This one is a definite upgrade and a high recommendation. I'll admit that my aforementioned adoration for all of the Romero Dead movies kind of blinds my vision at times. The original three - Night of the Living Dead, Dawn of the Dead, and Day of the Dead - are a holy trilogy for this horror fan and one of the reasons that I do what I do. Naturally, I was both ecstatic and apprehensive about Land of the Dead, the two-decades-in-waiting fourth film in Romero's zombie oeuvre. And, even though I think Land of the Dead is the worst of Romero's Dead movies (yes, even lower than Diary of the Dead, the most recent, which is the most underrated flick of 2008), this is a must-own for horror fans. Even the worst Romero zombie movie is better than most horror. And the Blu-Ray release is beautiful. The upgraded picture and sound really allows fans to appreciate what Romero did with Land, especially the excellent makeup work and sound design. Like Dawn of the Dead, the audio track is a beauty. And this time Universal imports everything, taking two featurettes from the standard version and slicing them up into U-Control material that you can watch picture-in-picture during the flick. Land of the Dead didn't find a big audience in theaters but it's grown in respect in just the three years since and a great Blu-Ray release like this one should help this zombie gem become a cult classic.

THE THING (1982)

There's nothing "cult" about John Carpenter's The Thing, a film that is widely recognized as a classic of the genre. How widely? I love The Thing but I have to admit that I was shocked to notice that the film ranks in the top 200 of ALL TIME in user votes on IMDB, right near Scarface, Toy Story, and The Terminator. The Thing is a classic. A horror fan who doesn't own it should turn in his fanboy card. And there's no better way to see it than in 1080P High-Definition Widescreen 2.35:1. This is actually the best video transfer of the three and, once again, the audio track is a beauty. The Thing is a film that pummels the senses and there's simply no better way to watch it than on Blu-Ray. With the other two films in Universal's Halloween Starter Pack coming out more than two decades later, The Thing is the true classic of the collection. I wish it had more special features - once again all you'll find are a commentary and U-Control behind-the-scenes info - but the movie itself and its technical transfer are spectacular enough that they more than make up for it. All three movies in the Halloween Starter Pack are worth buying (get 'em in one set for under $50 from most outlets) but The Thing is the true starter. It's where a generation of horror fans actually got theirs.