Laserblast – May 18: The New Daughter, Outlander, Gamera

Laserblast likes to shine a light on exciting horror, fantasy and science fiction home video releases, but this week the light is dim, with no exciting theatrical blockbusters making their debut on DVD, Blu-ray, or Video on Demand. Instead we look at a handful of direct-to-video titles and some cult movie re-issues, including one featuring a famous flying turtle.

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THE NEW DAUGHTER is a horror thriller starring Kevin Costner. The set-up is pretty standard: after a divorced father moves into a rural home with his two children, the daughter begins acting strange; is she just a troubled teen, or is she the victim of a mysterious evil lurking in the house? The film received a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it limited theatrical release last December, but it’s essentially a direct-to-video title. The handful of critics who have seen it have not been kind, giving the film a 29% rating at Rotten Tomatoes.
OUTLANDER bills itself as “BEOWULF Meets PREDATOR.” The novelty of this sci-fi action-adventure is its time period, with an alien crash-landing his ship on Earth during the Viking-era in Norway. Unfortunately, he brings with him a carniverous creature who wrecks havoc on all concerned. Jim Caviezel and Sophia Myles star, with Ron Perlman and John Hurt in supporting roles.
GAMERA: THE GIANT MONSTER is the first in a new series of DVD releases featuring Daie Studios answer to Godzilla. For decades, the film was available in altered form in the U.S., under the title GAMMERA THE INVINCIBLE. The new disc offers the original Japanese version, with a new HD master from vault elements, plus these bonus features:  a retrospective featurette looking at the Gamera franchise (including interviews with filmmakers), an audio commentary by August Ragone (author of  Eiji Tsuburaya: Master of Monsters), and a publicity gallery.
TOKYO GORE POLICE arrives again on DVD, this time in a two-disc set (titled TOKYO GORE POLICE 1.5) from Tokyo Shock. The story follows the Police Corporation’s battle with genetically modified super-criminals. The second disc i filled with short follow-up films.
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The low-budget ’60s exploitation opus THE NAVY VS. THE NIGHT MONSTERS – a film more famous for its title than anything else – gets the DVD treatment. Mamie Van Doren and Anthony Eisley. star in this tale of the Navy fighting some Night Monsters – basically walking, carnivorous plants along the lines of DAY OF THE TRIFFIDS.
Finally, a company named Echo Bridge Home Entertainment is release discount versions of previously available titles at $6.99 a pop. If you have been holding off on purchasing 30,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA, AVH: ALIEN VS HUNTER, INVASION OF THE POD PEOPLE, and HAUNTING OF WINCHESTER HOUSE, now’s your chance to save a few bucks while completing your collection.
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