halloween4DVD

DATA

88M 2006

VIDEO

Yes, it’s a triple-dip release...but by giving HALLOWEEN 4: THE RETURN OF MICHAEL MYERS the DIVIMAX treatment (a new HD transfer), I think that we can safely say that this DVD will look as good as it ever well! It sure surpasses the 1999 release (both in DVD and special-edition tin DVD).

With a nice anamorphic (16x9) image and clear sailing all the way (or at least for 88 minutes), the DVD earns its salt. No dirt, grain or pixellation are present while blacks are kept in par with shadow delineation (and therefore not a pitch black screen)--resulting that the quality of cinematographer Peter Lyons Collister’s atmospheric lensing can be fully-enjoyed on the small screen.

As usual, Anchor Bay has done a bang-up job...even for a low-budget sequel like this one. Bravo!

AUDIO

In a nice move, ABE has given its viewer 2 options to enjoy every shriek, slash and shooting: Dolby Digital Surround 2.0 and a remixed Dolby Digital Surround 5.1 track. The former has its ups-and-downs (especially when you pit dialogue levels against screaming levels) and the latter--as you might expect--is an improvement in all aspects.

At the very least, those of you who don’t have surround sound systems can enjoy the 2.0 track--just keep your hand on that volume button on the remote!

EXTRAS

Anemic but not without some merit, here they are:

Audio Commentaries: We have not 1, but 2 audio commentaries to entertain and educate.

1) The first commentary is with Screenwriter Alan B. McElroy and moderated by halloweenmovies.com webmaster Anthony Masi. When not divulging many behind-the-scenes mementos (both he and Director Dwight Little were school chums), McElroy does a solid job keeping us interested in the on-screen events with his easy-going banter. Nicely-done without being boring.

2) The second commentary is by actresses Ellie Cornell (Rachel) and Danielle Harris (Jamie)--and they sound like a bunch of giggling Valley girls! A commentary track meant to be purely entertaining, these women--who are quite attractive--laugh, giggle and basically spin tales of their involvement on the show. I giggled a few times and moved on.

Question: why wasn’t the director himself not on a commentary track? The world may never know...

Featurettes: One interesting, the other...totally unnecessary--but both are on this DVD!

1) The Making Of Halloween 4: Final Cut (17:00) focuses on interviews with actors Ellie Cornell, Danielle Harris, the late, great Producer Moustapha Akkad, Director Dwight Little, Screenwriter Alan B. McElroy and several others involved in the making of the movie. It is basically the usual back-slapping affair of complements--but one thing is for sure: everyone interviewed loved making HALLOWEEN 4 and treats it like gold. The featurette was produced & directed by Mark Cerulli, a former co-worker of mine at HBO. Nicely-done Mark, if a bit pandering. [Presented in fullscreen 4x3]

2) Halloween 4/5 Discussion Panel (18:00) is a cheesy featurette that features some of the cast members at the 2003 H25 convention discussion panel. Videotaped by some shlub using 1 camera, horrible zooms and no skill whatsoever --this featurette makes the Pamela Anderson-Tommy Lee porn video look like a masterpiece (and at least that one had sex and nudity)! Just awful! [Presented in fullscreen 4x3]

Trailer: At least ABE was nice enough to put the original theatrical trailer on the disc...again. And it should be like that with all DVDs, dammit! [Presented in anamorphic 16x9]

As aforementioned, 1 good featurette and a trailer doth not make for wonderful extras--but it’s better than nothing. The anamorphically-enhanced trailer gets a kudo however!

PACKAGING

A nicely-rendered recreation of the theatrical poster, bathed in an orange hue and encased in a standard Amaray case. There is a chapter index insert complete with a replica of the original theatrical poster art. Very sweet indeed!

OVERALL

With a terrific video transfer, decent audio elements and a mixture of mediocre extras, this 3rd release of HALLOWEEN 4 is only necessary for those who either don’t have the movie or want the best possible transfer. Recommended based on the purely technical elements.