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Hell Comes To Frogtown [DVD] [Reino Unido]
Formato | Importación, PAL |
Colaborador | William Smith, Nicholas Worth, Edye Byrde, Danielle Hand, Cec Verrell, Suzanne Solari, Sandahl Bergman, Kridsit Somers, Roddy Piper, Cliff Bemis, R.J. Kizer, Donald G. Jackson, Brian Frank, Rory Calhoun Ver más |
Idioma | Inglés |
Descripción del producto
With the 20th Century drawing to a close, nuclear war has wiped out civilization as we know it. The embattled human race s last remaining hope lies with one man and his loaded weapon.
Sam Hell may be an ex-con, but he also happens to be one of the last surviving fertile men on the planet. Now, under the custody of a group of feisty female fighters, Sam finds himself enlisted on a mission to impregnate a harem of beauties. Sounds cushy enough, but the ladies in question are prisoners of Frogtown home to a gang of mutant (and ill-mannered) amphibians!
Starring wrestler-turned-actor Rowdy Roddy Piper, known to John Carpenter enthusiasts for his body-slamming and bubblegum-chewing antics in They Live, Hell Comes to Frogtown is unashamedly a B-movie through and through with more guns and girls than you can shake a frog s leg at.
Detalles del producto
- Clasificado : Desconocido
- Dimensiones del paquete : 18 x 13,8 x 1,5 cm; 83 gramos
- Director : R.J. Kizer, Donald G. Jackson
- Formato multimedia : Importación, PAL
- Actores : Roddy Piper, Sandahl Bergman, Rory Calhoun, Cec Verrell, Cliff Bemis
- Subtítulos: : Inglés
- Estudio : Arrow Video
- ASIN : B01MQNRBQL
- País de origen : Reino Unido
- Número de discos : 1
- Opiniones de los clientes:
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Más información sobre cómo funcionan las opiniones de los clientes en AmazonReseñas más importantes de otros países
*****IMPORTANT NOTE ON MY RATING***** The rating for this movie is based on the release, not the quality of the plot. The movie itself, is a low budget campy post-apocalyptic story starring 'Rowdy' Roddy Piper. This release was meant for fans of cult science fiction movies.
There is nudity in 'Hell Comes to Frogtown'.
BLU-RAY: The picture is a newly scanned and restored in 4k from the 35mm interpositive. The movie is shown in 1.85:1 aspect ratio. I think the picture looks good. It isn't spectacular but the original elements probably weren't spectacular. There aren't any imperfections. Bottom line is this is as good as this movie is ever going to look so if you want this movie, this is the edition to get.
EXTRA'S:
-There is an alternate cover on the inside sleeve of the Blu-Ray case.
-Audio Commentary with director, Donald G. Jackson and writer/producer Randall Frakes - Jackson says he always thought this movie would become a cult classic. Everything you want to know about this movie will be told to you in this commentary. You have the two most important people for the commentary.
-'Mean and Green: Creating Hell Comes to Frogtown' - This is a 55 minute video interview with the writer and producer of 'Hell Comes to Frogtown', Randall Frakes. Frakes takes you step by step through the process as to how the movie got made and where the ideas came for many of the scenes. He talks about how he got fired from the production and which scenes didn't make it onto the screen.
-'Grappling with Green Gargantuans' - This is a 22 minute interview with 'Rowdy' Roddy Piper, the star of the movie. Piper talks about how he got the role and his relationship with the people involved. He believes that the director did not like him very much. He had taken no acting lessons and he didn't think the movie would do well. Ultimately, he says he was surprised that it became a cult classic and he doesn't know why he wasn't asked to do any sequels. He believes he wasn't asked for the sequel because they didn't like him. This appears to have been made in 1996.
-'Amphibian Armageddon: Commander Toty Remembers Hell Comes to Frogtown' - This is a video interview with actor Brian Frank - Frank played Commander Toty. Frank discusses how he got the part in the movie and recalls his scenes in this 14 minute interview.
-'Creature Feature Creator' - This is a video interview with the special effects artist, Steve Wang. This is a 15 minute featurette with Wang.
-Extended Scene - This is a poor print of an extended version of the opening scene in the movie.
-Theatrical Trailer
-Subtitles
*****WARNING - LOTS OF SPOILERS BELOW THIS POINT*****
PLOT/SUMMARY:
The movie opens with an outdoor scene in which a 'frog person', who's face is wrapped, kills somebody and then makes a comment about how they shouldn't have guns.
Sam Hell (Roddy Piper) is being interrogated by Captain Devlin (veteran actor William Smith). Devlin, the corrupt head of security, has been selling guns to the frog people but we won't find this out until later in the movie. Sam is a criminal, but is saved from more abuse at the hands of Captain Devlin by a group of nurses from a company called 'Medtech'. Medtech needs Sam because he is one of the few men left on earth that still has a sperm count high enough to impregnate women. A nuclear war has somehow made almost all men lose their fertility. In addition, most women can't reproduce.
Medtech needs Sam's services to impregnate a group of fertile women in order to keep the human race going. The problem is that a group of fertile women have been captured by the Frog people.
These 'Medtech' nurses also carry guns and can fight real well. Medtech attaches a 'chastity belt' to Sam. Well sort of... You see, the just want to make sure Sam doesn't take off. It has a flap so he can still use his... err... 'package'. If Sam tries to leave the area around Spangle (Sandahl Bergman), his privates will be electrocuted. But don't worry, the 'family jewels' are safe. It won't damage them. It will only cause them pain! If Sam doesn't cooperate, they can choose to send a shock to his 'package.' Along with Centinella, a very hot gunner, they take off into the wastelands heading for Frog Town.
Once in Frogtown, it's up to Sam and company to find the missing girls. They find out that the girls have fallen into the hands of Commander Toty. In order to infiltrate, Sam makes believe that Spangle is his slave and takes her into Frogtown. The idea is for Spangle to be enslaved with the other girls, giving her a chance to free them. In order to get to Commander Toty, Sam will need the help of a strange character named, Looney Tunes (Rory Calhoun) and a frog woman, who wants use of Sam's services. You see, Sam's skills in the bedroom have earned him a legendary reputation. Even his captors want to see what all the fuss is about. Can Sam save Spangle and the girls? Can Sam save the day? Can he fertilize under pressure? Can he stop the evil Captain Devlin? Will he survive to do what he must for mankind? You'll just have to watch to find out!
PRODUCTION: 'Hell Comes to Frogtown' was released in 1988 by New World Pictures.
-The movie cost $1.6 million to make. The original budget had been $150,000.
-The movie was supposed to have a theatrical release but ultimately it went straight to video. It was shown in one theater for 1 week.
WHO IS 'ROWDY' RODDY PIPER?: Roddy Piper is the wrestling name of a Canadian citizen that was born Roderick George Toombs. Before Piper became a wrestler he won the Golden Gloves boxing championship in his weight division. He was also awarded the black belt in Judo. He began wrestling in the AWA. His name became Roddy Piper because he was supposed to be Roddy the piper (in reference to the bagpipes). He eventually worked his way up to the WWF. His 'War to Settle the Score' involving Hulk Hogan and Cyndi Lauper let to the very first WrestleMania. Piper got into movies and made them up until the day he died. His most successful movie was John Carpenter's 'They Live'. He continued to wrestle on and off for the rest of his life. Piper passed away at the age of 61 in 2015.
WHO IS SANDAHL BERGMAN?: Sandahl Bergman is best known for her role in 'Conan the Barbarian'. She was born in 1951 and she got her start as a Broadway dancer. She got noticed as a dancer in 'All That Jazz' in 1979. In addition to 'Conan' she got a starring role as the villianess in 'Rod Sonja'. She has not acted since 2003.
WHO IS RORY CALHOUN?: Calhoun is easily the most established actor in this movie. Calhoun was very well known in Hollywood and had a very long career. He made his name in Westerns of which he starred in many in the 50's and 60's. He also had many supporting roles in mainstream movies. He played a major role in two Marilyn Monroe movies in the 50's. He was nearing the end of his career when he took the part of 'Looney Tunes' in 'Hell Comes to Frogtown'. Calhoun passed away in 1999 at the age of 76.
WHILE WE ARE AT IT WHO IS CEC VERELL!?!: Ok, so I'm putting this paragraph here only because I was interested in knowing. I have to admit it's not because of her acting ability. Cec had mostly minor roles throughout her career. Her biggest role was that of 'Silk' in the 1986 action film. She managed to get a few acting parts in mainstream television such as 'NYPD' Blue and 'ER'. Her name is pronounced as if the 'C's are 'S's. Cec is short for Cecilia. Other than that, I don't know much about her.
COMMENTS:
-How many movies do we see where a former wrestler's sperm saves the world?
-You might wonder where the idea came for the frog people. Basically, the idea stemmed from 'The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'.
-I know making critical comments in a movie such as this is pretty futile but Sam should have used a knife instead of a katana to kill Captain Devlin.
-When Rowdy Roddy is handed a contract to sign, if you watch carefully, you see him dot the 'i' when he signs his name. Obviously there is no 'i' in 'Sam Hell'! Roddy points this out in his interview in the extra's. He was signing his name as 'Roddy Piper'.
CONCLUSIONS:
'Hell Comes to Frogtown' is a low budget movie and should be judged that way. It at least has some recognizable names for it's time period even if they are for 'B' movie actors/actresses.
There are some decent sets and the 'frog people' look pretty good. The acting is at best average and the movie comes across as being quite 'campy' at times. There is quite a bit of comedy in 'Frogtown' and it definitely made me laugh several times.
I'm giving this release 5 stars. This is an excellent release for a little known 'cult classic'.
RATINGS/RECOMMENDATIONS:
Picture: 9/10 or 4 1/2 stars - It's as good as it's ever going to get.
Extra's: 9/10 or 4 1/2 stars - These are excellent
Plot: 7/10 or 3 1/2 stars - This is being judged as a low budget movie.
SFX: 6/10 or 3 stars - The frog costumes were decent enough.
Overall: 4 1/2 stars which I'm rounding up to 5
-Recommended for 'dystopian future' diehards.
-Recommended for fans of Roddy Piper and/or veteran B movie actor William Smith.
-Recommended for fans of Roger Corman produced movies.
ARE THERE ANY SEQUELS?: There are two sequels, 'Return to Frogtown' and 'Max Hell, Frog Warrior', neither of which star Roddy Piper.
Revisado en los Estados Unidos el 21 de septiembre de 2019
*****IMPORTANT NOTE ON MY RATING***** The rating for this movie is based on the release, not the quality of the plot. The movie itself, is a low budget campy post-apocalyptic story starring 'Rowdy' Roddy Piper. This release was meant for fans of cult science fiction movies.
There is nudity in 'Hell Comes to Frogtown'.
BLU-RAY: The picture is a newly scanned and restored in 4k from the 35mm interpositive. The movie is shown in 1.85:1 aspect ratio. I think the picture looks good. It isn't spectacular but the original elements probably weren't spectacular. There aren't any imperfections. Bottom line is this is as good as this movie is ever going to look so if you want this movie, this is the edition to get.
EXTRA'S:
-There is an alternate cover on the inside sleeve of the Blu-Ray case.
-Audio Commentary with director, Donald G. Jackson and writer/producer Randall Frakes - Jackson says he always thought this movie would become a cult classic. Everything you want to know about this movie will be told to you in this commentary. You have the two most important people for the commentary.
-'Mean and Green: Creating Hell Comes to Frogtown' - This is a 55 minute video interview with the writer and producer of 'Hell Comes to Frogtown', Randall Frakes. Frakes takes you step by step through the process as to how the movie got made and where the ideas came for many of the scenes. He talks about how he got fired from the production and which scenes didn't make it onto the screen.
-'Grappling with Green Gargantuans' - This is a 22 minute interview with 'Rowdy' Roddy Piper, the star of the movie. Piper talks about how he got the role and his relationship with the people involved. He believes that the director did not like him very much. He had taken no acting lessons and he didn't think the movie would do well. Ultimately, he says he was surprised that it became a cult classic and he doesn't know why he wasn't asked to do any sequels. He believes he wasn't asked for the sequel because they didn't like him. This appears to have been made in 1996.
-'Amphibian Armageddon: Commander Toty Remembers Hell Comes to Frogtown' - This is a video interview with actor Brian Frank - Frank played Commander Toty. Frank discusses how he got the part in the movie and recalls his scenes in this 14 minute interview.
-'Creature Feature Creator' - This is a video interview with the special effects artist, Steve Wang. This is a 15 minute featurette with Wang.
-Extended Scene - This is a poor print of an extended version of the opening scene in the movie.
-Theatrical Trailer
-Subtitles
*****WARNING - LOTS OF SPOILERS BELOW THIS POINT*****
PLOT/SUMMARY:
The movie opens with an outdoor scene in which a 'frog person', who's face is wrapped, kills somebody and then makes a comment about how they shouldn't have guns.
Sam Hell (Roddy Piper) is being interrogated by Captain Devlin (veteran actor William Smith). Devlin, the corrupt head of security, has been selling guns to the frog people but we won't find this out until later in the movie. Sam is a criminal, but is saved from more abuse at the hands of Captain Devlin by a group of nurses from a company called 'Medtech'. Medtech needs Sam because he is one of the few men left on earth that still has a sperm count high enough to impregnate women. A nuclear war has somehow made almost all men lose their fertility. In addition, most women can't reproduce.
Medtech needs Sam's services to impregnate a group of fertile women in order to keep the human race going. The problem is that a group of fertile women have been captured by the Frog people.
These 'Medtech' nurses also carry guns and can fight real well. Medtech attaches a 'chastity belt' to Sam. Well sort of... You see, the just want to make sure Sam doesn't take off. It has a flap so he can still use his... err... 'package'. If Sam tries to leave the area around Spangle (Sandahl Bergman), his privates will be electrocuted. But don't worry, the 'family jewels' are safe. It won't damage them. It will only cause them pain! If Sam doesn't cooperate, they can choose to send a shock to his 'package.' Along with Centinella, a very hot gunner, they take off into the wastelands heading for Frog Town.
Once in Frogtown, it's up to Sam and company to find the missing girls. They find out that the girls have fallen into the hands of Commander Toty. In order to infiltrate, Sam makes believe that Spangle is his slave and takes her into Frogtown. The idea is for Spangle to be enslaved with the other girls, giving her a chance to free them. In order to get to Commander Toty, Sam will need the help of a strange character named, Looney Tunes (Rory Calhoun) and a frog woman, who wants use of Sam's services. You see, Sam's skills in the bedroom have earned him a legendary reputation. Even his captors want to see what all the fuss is about. Can Sam save Spangle and the girls? Can Sam save the day? Can he fertilize under pressure? Can he stop the evil Captain Devlin? Will he survive to do what he must for mankind? You'll just have to watch to find out!
PRODUCTION: 'Hell Comes to Frogtown' was released in 1988 by New World Pictures.
-The movie cost $1.6 million to make. The original budget had been $150,000.
-The movie was supposed to have a theatrical release but ultimately it went straight to video. It was shown in one theater for 1 week.
WHO IS 'ROWDY' RODDY PIPER?: Roddy Piper is the wrestling name of a Canadian citizen that was born Roderick George Toombs. Before Piper became a wrestler he won the Golden Gloves boxing championship in his weight division. He was also awarded the black belt in Judo. He began wrestling in the AWA. His name became Roddy Piper because he was supposed to be Roddy the piper (in reference to the bagpipes). He eventually worked his way up to the WWF. His 'War to Settle the Score' involving Hulk Hogan and Cyndi Lauper let to the very first WrestleMania. Piper got into movies and made them up until the day he died. His most successful movie was John Carpenter's 'They Live'. He continued to wrestle on and off for the rest of his life. Piper passed away at the age of 61 in 2015.
WHO IS SANDAHL BERGMAN?: Sandahl Bergman is best known for her role in 'Conan the Barbarian'. She was born in 1951 and she got her start as a Broadway dancer. She got noticed as a dancer in 'All That Jazz' in 1979. In addition to 'Conan' she got a starring role as the villianess in 'Rod Sonja'. She has not acted since 2003.
WHO IS RORY CALHOUN?: Calhoun is easily the most established actor in this movie. Calhoun was very well known in Hollywood and had a very long career. He made his name in Westerns of which he starred in many in the 50's and 60's. He also had many supporting roles in mainstream movies. He played a major role in two Marilyn Monroe movies in the 50's. He was nearing the end of his career when he took the part of 'Looney Tunes' in 'Hell Comes to Frogtown'. Calhoun passed away in 1999 at the age of 76.
WHILE WE ARE AT IT WHO IS CEC VERELL!?!: Ok, so I'm putting this paragraph here only because I was interested in knowing. I have to admit it's not because of her acting ability. Cec had mostly minor roles throughout her career. Her biggest role was that of 'Silk' in the 1986 action film. She managed to get a few acting parts in mainstream television such as 'NYPD' Blue and 'ER'. Her name is pronounced as if the 'C's are 'S's. Cec is short for Cecilia. Other than that, I don't know much about her.
COMMENTS:
-How many movies do we see where a former wrestler's sperm saves the world?
-You might wonder where the idea came for the frog people. Basically, the idea stemmed from 'The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'.
-I know making critical comments in a movie such as this is pretty futile but Sam should have used a knife instead of a katana to kill Captain Devlin.
-When Rowdy Roddy is handed a contract to sign, if you watch carefully, you see him dot the 'i' when he signs his name. Obviously there is no 'i' in 'Sam Hell'! Roddy points this out in his interview in the extra's. He was signing his name as 'Roddy Piper'.
CONCLUSIONS:
'Hell Comes to Frogtown' is a low budget movie and should be judged that way. It at least has some recognizable names for it's time period even if they are for 'B' movie actors/actresses.
There are some decent sets and the 'frog people' look pretty good. The acting is at best average and the movie comes across as being quite 'campy' at times. There is quite a bit of comedy in 'Frogtown' and it definitely made me laugh several times.
I'm giving this release 5 stars. This is an excellent release for a little known 'cult classic'.
RATINGS/RECOMMENDATIONS:
Picture: 9/10 or 4 1/2 stars - It's as good as it's ever going to get.
Extra's: 9/10 or 4 1/2 stars - These are excellent
Plot: 7/10 or 3 1/2 stars - This is being judged as a low budget movie.
SFX: 6/10 or 3 stars - The frog costumes were decent enough.
Overall: 4 1/2 stars which I'm rounding up to 5
-Recommended for 'dystopian future' diehards.
-Recommended for fans of Roddy Piper and/or veteran B movie actor William Smith.
-Recommended for fans of Roger Corman produced movies.
ARE THERE ANY SEQUELS?: There are two sequels, 'Return to Frogtown' and 'Max Hell, Frog Warrior', neither of which star Roddy Piper.
In the future, the Earth has been reduced to a radioactive wasteland thanks to a nuclear war that didn’t end after a few strategic missiles were launched. Not all of humanity was frizzle fried in the attacks. But sadly nearly all the men have become in fertile. Sam Hell (Piper) wanders the wasteland, but gets caught by an outpost of humanity when he hooks up with a local girl. He was in the process of being executed until the medical team discovers the woman is pregnant. Hell is given a choice, death or being an agent who will help repopulate the planet. Naturally Hell chooses the more fun option although it comes at a major price. The first is a weaponized codpiece to protect his precious fluids and make sure he doesn’t run away. The second is an assignment to head back to Frogtown where there’s rumors of women being held captive by the mutant amphibians. He’s assigned to be under the care of Spangle (the sexy Sandahl Bergman, Conan, Red Sonja, She), a military doctor who has been trained how to train and control a fertile man like Hell. She has a plan on how they’ll go into Helltown with him acting like she's’s his female slave that he’s eager to trade so they can get closer to the imprisoned human females. Things go right at first as Hell hooks up with his old wandering pal Looney Tunes (the great Roger Corman - and Francis Coppola - regular, William Smith). But as usual, the plan falls apart and Hell must improvise or humanity will fall to the empire of the mutant frogs.
After the success of Mad Max and The Road Warrior, there was a wave of post apocalyptic scavenger movies. They pretty much had an outpost of humanity doing its best to survive on locations dressed to resemble Burning Man as if designed by the Fyre Festival planners. But none of those clones of Max had mutant frogs going against humanity which is what made this film so amazing. Certainly singular and wildly unique.
Great performances by all: Piper is very likable, it's really a shame he wasn't utilized more often. His acting style here is not unlike Bruce Campbell's Ash in the Evil Dead series: Played straight with just a leeedle dusting of camp. None of that dreaded Fred Olen Ray garbage.
The great Rory Calhoun (Angel, Avenging Angel, Motel Hell) is also terrific.
Specs and extras:
Video is 1.85:1 anamorphic. The 4K transfer is from the 35mm interpositive. The colors and resolution are excellent so you’ll see more of Roddy Piper and the mutant frogs. The audio is DTS-HD MA Stereo. The disc is subtitled(optional English).
Audio Commentary with Cinematographer/director Donald G. Jackson (optical FX on Escape From New York) with writer/producer Randall Frakes goes in deep for how this joyful project came together. They trace their joining up creatively while working for Roger Corman to branching out making their own movies for New Line. Randall edited Aliens months before Frogtown. Both worked with James Cameron in various capacities from 1978 through True Lies (Frakes has a writing credit).
Mean and Green (55:43) really explores the film with Randall Frakes. He admits they winged it and wanted it to mix underground comics with classic comics. He and Jackson met up while working on Galaxy of Terror at Corman. Their supervisor was James Cameron on that shoot.
Grappling with Green Gargantuans (22:16) sits down with Roddy Piper. He never wanted to be an actor or an entertainer. But it happened to him. He said it was a tough movie to make because he didn’t get along with the director. He wasn’t even offered a chance to be in the sequel. He talks about getting serious about the movie after he got the script. He’s refreshingly candid about showbiz. He talks about his wife’s reaction to the role since he only told her he’d be fighting frogs. Sadly, Roddy passed away in 2015 and is dearly missed.
Trailers and a SFX featurette as well.
Revisado en los Estados Unidos el 3 de enero de 2020
In the future, the Earth has been reduced to a radioactive wasteland thanks to a nuclear war that didn’t end after a few strategic missiles were launched. Not all of humanity was frizzle fried in the attacks. But sadly nearly all the men have become in fertile. Sam Hell (Piper) wanders the wasteland, but gets caught by an outpost of humanity when he hooks up with a local girl. He was in the process of being executed until the medical team discovers the woman is pregnant. Hell is given a choice, death or being an agent who will help repopulate the planet. Naturally Hell chooses the more fun option although it comes at a major price. The first is a weaponized codpiece to protect his precious fluids and make sure he doesn’t run away. The second is an assignment to head back to Frogtown where there’s rumors of women being held captive by the mutant amphibians. He’s assigned to be under the care of Spangle (the sexy Sandahl Bergman, Conan, Red Sonja, She), a military doctor who has been trained how to train and control a fertile man like Hell. She has a plan on how they’ll go into Helltown with him acting like she's’s his female slave that he’s eager to trade so they can get closer to the imprisoned human females. Things go right at first as Hell hooks up with his old wandering pal Looney Tunes (the great Roger Corman - and Francis Coppola - regular, William Smith). But as usual, the plan falls apart and Hell must improvise or humanity will fall to the empire of the mutant frogs.
After the success of Mad Max and The Road Warrior, there was a wave of post apocalyptic scavenger movies. They pretty much had an outpost of humanity doing its best to survive on locations dressed to resemble Burning Man as if designed by the Fyre Festival planners. But none of those clones of Max had mutant frogs going against humanity which is what made this film so amazing. Certainly singular and wildly unique.
Great performances by all: Piper is very likable, it's really a shame he wasn't utilized more often. His acting style here is not unlike Bruce Campbell's Ash in the Evil Dead series: Played straight with just a leeedle dusting of camp. None of that dreaded Fred Olen Ray garbage.
The great Rory Calhoun (Angel, Avenging Angel, Motel Hell) is also terrific.
Specs and extras:
Video is 1.85:1 anamorphic. The 4K transfer is from the 35mm interpositive. The colors and resolution are excellent so you’ll see more of Roddy Piper and the mutant frogs. The audio is DTS-HD MA Stereo. The disc is subtitled(optional English).
Audio Commentary with Cinematographer/director Donald G. Jackson (optical FX on Escape From New York) with writer/producer Randall Frakes goes in deep for how this joyful project came together. They trace their joining up creatively while working for Roger Corman to branching out making their own movies for New Line. Randall edited Aliens months before Frogtown. Both worked with James Cameron in various capacities from 1978 through True Lies (Frakes has a writing credit).
Mean and Green (55:43) really explores the film with Randall Frakes. He admits they winged it and wanted it to mix underground comics with classic comics. He and Jackson met up while working on Galaxy of Terror at Corman. Their supervisor was James Cameron on that shoot.
Grappling with Green Gargantuans (22:16) sits down with Roddy Piper. He never wanted to be an actor or an entertainer. But it happened to him. He said it was a tough movie to make because he didn’t get along with the director. He wasn’t even offered a chance to be in the sequel. He talks about getting serious about the movie after he got the script. He’s refreshingly candid about showbiz. He talks about his wife’s reaction to the role since he only told her he’d be fighting frogs. Sadly, Roddy passed away in 2015 and is dearly missed.
Trailers and a SFX featurette as well.
Label: ARROW VIDEO
Transfer provided by: ?
Aspect Ratio: 1.85 : 1
Media: BD Set / Standard Edition
Some Thoughts About The Movie (NOT a base for my rating):
Simple spoken the movie spins around two, maybe three little ideas and there is nothing more gag- or story wise than that. RODDY PIPER (unfortunately died in 2015) does a fine job due to his charming boy like appearance. The girls performances are stiff and constrained. The movie could be so funny or crazy or interesting or whatever…but it is not. Truth is, HELL… feels empty and unpolished. It tries hard to be another instant cult pulp movie, but has no own direction. The makers are just imitating. Maybe it would be real fun if TROMA did it. Frankly spoken, I think HELL is like a cheap TV production made by people with absolutely no plan how to do a genre movie. Every Episode of THE A TEAM is more entertaining. That said I feel it is a pity because the movie is partially shot very beautifully but it misses a fluently present own style. Frog design is well made but the makers wrote nothing special for them and therefore they appear totally replaceable. Could be some drawing board human characters as well. Even the action is stiff, life- and bloodless. Actually, HELL is a very clean movie in every aspect. Trash movie buffs may be disappointed. But hey, I do not want to be too strict here. I think RODDY fans will have a fun time watching his performance. I think his appearance is the most mentionable point of the movie. Feel free to think otherwise. Your opinion is always welcome.
No Grain Baby, No Gain / The Transfer:
The 2K (?) transfer for this BD set is really good. Vivid colors, good overall contrast und a relatively film-like grain structure, texture and grip. Level of detail is great and there is no crush in blacks. The movie looks very good in movement and in bright but also in dark segments. Well done. The scanned source was in excellent condition. The transfer is cleaned and stabilized perfectly.
Cut and Run:
This is a version intégrale. No inserts from low quality elements or SD materials have been applied.
HELL COMES TO FROGTOWN has been passed uncut by the BBFC. There really is not anything to cut anyway.
Final Thoughts:
Fans, collectors and people with big screens or projectors can spend their money for this BD Set without any further doubt. The Transfer looks very good and film-like. There are not many extras coming with this BD set.
How I rate / What I rate:
My ratings refer exclusively to technical aspects of BD sets. The more film-like a HD transfer looks and feels via a projection, the more high-class the source is scanned and digitally treated afterwards, the higher my ratings will be. Digital phenomena like edge enhancement, block noise, digital appealing grain, swarming grain / noise behavior and DNR filtering will directly result in lower ratings.
I do not rate movies at all. In the introduction part I just offer my opinion, based on taste, preferences and knowledge about film/photography in general. Movies are artificial constructions where many efforts have been taken (including complex postproduction) to accomplish a vision of whatsoever kind. No movie made for cinema ever shot has earned a 1 star rating on AMAZON or a 1 point rating on IMDB. I have studied many publications about making films, their psychological impact, and the subject violence on film. I am a hobby photographer knowing much about frame compositions, color and light effects and different styles. I am also a hobby musician and sound designer for my own private joy. I could rate a movie/ its soundtrack, but why should I? Things are what they are and nothing more or less. I like to think beyond mind constructed terms of good and bad. So called "objectivity" becomes fast diluted by preferences which results in comments of personal taste. These comments are fine but they go without any base value for creating a rating-scale out of them. Technical aspects are a different kind of matter. DNR, edge enhancement, block noise and such things are obvious even on small screens and maybe we can speak more of objectivity and measurability in this area. I think we should be informed about the quality of a product.
All about Ev(m)e:
I am a collector of films for 27 Years, own about 3.000 films (would be far more, but I often sort out transfers I do not like) and watch them in a home-cinema room via big screen projection. I am also a hobby musician and photographer with some experience scanning camera negatives in high definitions. I am fascinated by analog film since I am a kid and spent hours for hours in cinemas and visiting film festivals.
In a world devastated by nuclear war, fertility [or lack of it] has become the most important thing because how else can you re-equip an army with soldiers to carry on fighting? The wartime radiation has made most of the men shoot blanks so the burly, not-so-smart, Sam Hell [wrestler, 'Rowdy' Roddy Piper] is a precious commodity. You see, old Sam shoots and scores. Every time. He's young, dumb and full of, you-know-what. His thingy is so important he has to wear a futuristic, chastity belt [with hatch] as he's literally, the future of the human race. A race of Roddys, what a thought. As some fertile women have been captured and taken to Frogtown, the lithe, attractive, bespectacled, Dr Spangle [Sandahl Bergman] and butch, no-nonsense, Centinella [Cec Verrell] together with Sam set out on a mission to rescue them. Why, they need him to go along is a bit of a mystery. Surely, if he's so important you'd leave him and his knackers behind. Travelling in their camp, pink van [yes, really], they reach Frogtown [an old factory by the looks of it] and meet up with grizzled, uranium prospector, Looney Tunes [50's western star, Rory Calhoun]. As its name suggests, Frogtown is populated with amphibians, the result of mutations caused by the radiation. With help from an embedded spy, Arabella [Kristi Somers], Sam and Spangle set out to free the girls from the evil clutches of Commander Toty [Brian Frank].
Made by cult, film-makers, New World Pictures [a few years after Corman has gone], it was directed by Donald Jackson and RJ Kiser. Although, Corman had vacated the scene, the finished film is still very Cormanesque in appearance. It would appear - at least, according to sfx artist, Steve Wang - that there were problems on the set and that Jackson's role became more diminished at filming continued. Piper claims in the interview, that the director hated him and never wanted him. Which director he meant is unclear. Filmed during 1987 at the dusty landscapes of 'Indian Dunes', Southern California, it came out a year before Piper's more famous turn in Carpenter's, They Live [1988]. I have no recollection of this film at the cinemas so I guess, it was a direct-to-video release.
OK, this is ridiculous. I'll go further, this is probably the most ridiculous film I've ever seen. That doesn't make it the worst film I've ever seen though because you know what ... it's good fun. And, sometimes you need that. It's actually quite well made considering its limited budget and the cast carry it off with just the right amount of tongue-in-cheek. Roddy is no actor but he suits this material very well and he's obviously enjoying himself. Which means that we enjoy ourselves watching him. The impressive creature effects by Wang are a bonus. Of the rest of the cast, Bergdahl comes across best and it's nice to see an old hand like Calhoun again. Under the make-up, Frank and Somers give character to their respective roles. Given its silly premise, it is full of quotable lines that you'll be saying long after you've watched it. If you don't like this then you have no heart, if you really love it and it's your favourite film then you've probably got no brain.
As you would expect, this is another top notch Arrow release. The image has a layer of light grain which makes it look very cinematic. The only blemishes are the usual black spots and flecks of dust and dirt on the film. They are hardly noticeable. The sound could probably do with a boost because some dialogue is difficult to discern. The extras include a 21 minute interview with the amiable Piper, a 15 minute interview with Wang discussing his mechanical frog's heads and the actors within and a 13 minute interview with Brian Frank. No English subtitles.
COLLECTION TIME CHARLIE...
COLLECTION TIME!!!