It\u2019s time for the sparkling bloodsuckers and the shirtless lycanthropes of \u201cTwilight\u201d to step aside. A pair of horror cult classics are set to arrive, fangs and all, on Blu-ray on Tuesday, June 18: Joe Dante\u2019s \u201cThe Howling\u201d (1981) and Tobe Hooper\u2019s \u201cLifeforce\u201d (1985).<\/p>\n
Co-written by John Sayles, formerly of Hoboken, and based on the novel by Gary Brandner, \u201cThe Howling\u201d stars Dee Wallace as a television newscaster who has a terrifying encounter with a serial killer. Seeking a respite, she heads off to the woodsy retreat known as \u201cThe Colony.\u201d Let\u2019s just say things get hairy from there.<\/p>\n
Dante, an auteur with a wicked sense of humor who also gave the world \u201cPiranha\u201d (1978) and \u201cGremlins\u201d (1984), assembled a killer ensemble cast here, with Kevin McCarthy, John Carradine, Slim Pickens, Dick Miller and Robert Picardo all making appearances.<\/p>\n
The real star of \u201cThe Howling,\u201d however, is Rob Bottin: a make-up effects wizard of the highest order, Bottin crafted some flat-out terrific and terrifying werewolf designs here, and his work gets a fine spotlight on this gorgeous Blu-ray edition.<\/p>\n
Over the years, \u201cThe Howling\u201d became something of a B-movie institution, eventually spawning seven sequels and a remake.<\/p>\n
On the other hand, \u201cLifeforce\u201d has largely been an obscurity over the past couple of decades. Hopefully that will change next week, because this movie is a blast.<\/p>\n
For horror and sci-fi fans, the list of behind-the-scenes players alone is cause for celebration: the film was \u201cTexas Chain Saw Massacre\u201d (1974) director Tobe Hooper\u2019s follow-up to \u201cPoltergeist\u201d (1982). Based on the novel \u201cThe Space Vampires\u201d by Colin Wilson, the film\u2019s screenplay was co-written by \u201cAlien\u201d (1979) creator Dan O\u2019Bannon. On top of that, it was produced by Israeli B-movie kings Yoram Globus and Menahem Golan.<\/p>\n
Trying to put the utterly insane plot of \u201cLifeforce\u201d into words simply won\u2019t do justice to the proceedings. O\u2019Bannon takes a straightforward sci-fi concept \u2013 soul-sucking vampires from space bring havoc to London \u2013 and keeps spinning his yarn until it becomes an all-out horror apocalypse with plenty of dark comedy. The film feels like a piece of gonzo connective tissue between O\u2019Bannon\u2019s sci-fi works of \u201cAlien\u201d and 1974\u2019s \u201cDark Star\u201d and his 1985 horror comedy \u201cThe Return of the Living Dead.\u201d<\/p>\n
If you\u2019re a horror movie fan looking for something hard-edged and off the beaten path, just trust me: \u201cLifeforce\u201d has everything you need, and more.<\/p>\n
Set to be released by Scream Factory on Tuesday, both \u201cThe Howling\u201d and \u201cLifeforce\u201d are strictly adults-only affairs, with plenty of lovingly-captured gore and nudity to spare. Both releases also boast plenty of bonus features \u2013 commentary tracks, interviews with cast and crew members, etc. \u2013 along with the U.S. theatrical cut and extended international cut of \u201cLifeforce.\u201d