The Arrow Thread

[Susan Foreman]

NEW UK/US/CA TITLE: Sailor Suit and Machine Gun (Blu-ray)

Release date: November 15

Arrow RRP: £18:00

"A perky high-schooler takes on the mob in Sailor Suit and Machine Gun, a one-of-a-kind genre-bender that riffs on the yakuza film, coming-of-age drama and ‘idol movie’, inventively adapted from Jiro Akagawa's popular novel by director Shinji Somai (Typhoon Club, Wait and See), a massively influential figure in Japanese cinema whose work has been little seen outside his homeland.

Hoshi Izumi is a young innocent forced to grow up quickly when her father dies and she finds herself next in line as the boss of a moribund yakuza clan. Wrenched from the security of her classroom and thrust into the heart of the criminal underworld, she must come to terms with the fact that her actions hold the key to the life or death of the men under her command as they come under fire from rival gangs.

Presented in both its Original Theatrical and longer Complete versions, and the first time one of Somai's films has been released on home video in the West, this landmark work from his early career was responsible for launching teen talent Hiroko Yakushimaru (Legend of the Eight Samurai; Detective Story) as the iconic face of a generation, with the catchy theme song she performs indelibly etched into the zeitgeist of early-1980s Japan."

SPECIAL EDITION CONTENTS

• High Definition Blu-rayTM (1080p) presentations of the Original Theatrical Version and the 1982 Complete Version (kanpeki-ban) re-issue of the film, restored by Kadokawa Pictures from a 4K scan of the original negative
• Original uncompressed Japanese mono and 5.1 audio
• Optional English subtitles
• Girls, Guns and Gangsters: Shinji Somai & Sailor Suit & Machine Gun, an exclusive new 50-minute documentary featuring actor Akira Emoto, film scholar Chika Kinoshita, Somai biographer Tatsuya Kimura and Sailor Suit assistant director Koji Enomoto discussing the making of the film, its director and its legacy
• Original Trailers and TV spots for both versions
• Image Gallery
• Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Michael Lomon

[Susan Foreman]

NEW UK/US/CA TITLE: Mill of the Stone Women (Limited Edition Blu-ray)

Release date: November 29

Arrow RRP: £35:00

"Before Black Sabbath, before I Vampiri, director Giorgio Ferroni (The Lion of Thebes, Blood for a Silver Dollar) introduced audiences to period horror Italian-style with his chilling 1960 shocker Mill of the Stone Women – a classic tale of terror redolent with the atmosphere of vintage Hammer Horror.

Young art student Hans von Arnam (Pierre Brice, Night of the Damned) arrives by barge at an old mill to write a monograph about its celebrated sculptures of women in the throes of death and torture, maintained and curated by the mill’s owner, the hermetic Professor Wahl (Herbert Böhme, Secret of the Red Orchid). But when Hans encounters the professor’s beautiful and mysterious daughter Elfi (Scilla Gabel, Modesty Blaise), his own fate becomes inexorably bound up with hers, and with the shocking secret that lies at the heart of the so-called Mill of the Stone Women.

The first Italian horror film to be shot in color, Mill of the Stone Women prefigured a raft of other spaghetti nightmares, including the work of maestros Mario Bava and Dario Argento. Arrow Video is proud to present this brand-new restoration of one of the foundational titles of Italian horror."

2-DISC LIMITED EDITION CONTENTS

• New 2K restoration from the original negative by Arrow Films
• 1080p Blu-ray™ presentations of four different versions of the film: the original 96-minute Italian and English export versions, the 90-minute French version, containing exclusive footage, and the 95-minute US version, containing alternate dubbing, re-ordered scenes and added visual effects
• Limited edition packaging with reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Adam Rabalais
• Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by Roberto Curti, an in-depth comparison of the different versions by Brad Stevens, and a selection of contemporary reviews
• Fold-out double-sided poster featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Adam Rabalais - Six double-sided, postcard-sized lobby card reproduction artcards

DISC 1 – THE ITALIAN AND ENGLISH EXPORT VERSIONS

• Restored original lossless mono Italian and English soundtracks
• Newly translated English subtitles for the Italian soundtrack
• Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing for the English soundtrack
• New audio commentary by Tim Lucas, author of Mario Bava: All the Colors of the Dark
• Mill of the Stone Women & The Gothic Body, a new visual essay on the trope of the wax/statue woman in Gothic horror by author and critic Kat Ellinger
• Turned to Stone, a newly edited featurette containing archival interviews with actress Liana Orfei and film historian Fabio Melelli
• A Little Chat with Dr. Mabuse, an archival interview with actor Wolfgang Preiss
• Rare opening titles from the UK release, re-titled “Drops of Blood”
• German opening titles
• US and German theatrical trailers
• Image galleries

DISC 2 – THE FRENCH AND US VERSIONS (LIMITED EDITION EXCLUSIVE)

• Restored original lossless mono French soundtrack for the French version
• Restored original lossless mono English soundtrack for the US version
• Newly translated English subtitles for the French soundtrack
• Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing for the English soundtrack

[MrBarlow]

Originally Posted by Susan Foreman

NEW UK/US/CA TITLE: Mill of the Stone Women (Limited Edition Blu-ray)

Release date: November 29

Arrow RRP: £35:00

"Before Black Sabbath, before I Vampiri, director Giorgio Ferroni (The Lion of Thebes, Blood for a Silver Dollar) introduced audiences to period horror Italian-style with his chilling 1960 shocker Mill of the Stone Women – a classic tale of terror redolent with the atmosphere of vintage Hammer Horror.

Young art student Hans von Arnam (Pierre Brice, Night of the Damned) arrives by barge at an old mill to write a monograph about its celebrated sculptures of women in the throes of death and torture, maintained and curated by the mill’s owner, the hermetic Professor Wahl (Herbert Böhme, Secret of the Red Orchid). But when Hans encounters the professor’s beautiful and mysterious daughter Elfi (Scilla Gabel, Modesty Blaise), his own fate becomes inexorably bound up with hers, and with the shocking secret that lies at the heart of the so-called Mill of the Stone Women.

The first Italian horror film to be shot in color, Mill of the Stone Women prefigured a raft of other spaghetti nightmares, including the work of maestros Mario Bava and Dario Argento. Arrow Video is proud to present this brand-new restoration of one of the foundational titles of Italian horror."

2-DISC LIMITED EDITION CONTENTS

• New 2K restoration from the original negative by Arrow Films
• 1080p Blu-ray™ presentations of four different versions of the film: the original 96-minute Italian and English export versions, the 90-minute French version, containing exclusive footage, and the 95-minute US version, containing alternate dubbing, re-ordered scenes and added visual effects
• Limited edition packaging with reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Adam Rabalais
• Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by Roberto Curti, an in-depth comparison of the different versions by Brad Stevens, and a selection of contemporary reviews
• Fold-out double-sided poster featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Adam Rabalais - Six double-sided, postcard-sized lobby card reproduction artcards

DISC 1 – THE ITALIAN AND ENGLISH EXPORT VERSIONS

• Restored original lossless mono Italian and English soundtracks
• Newly translated English subtitles for the Italian soundtrack
• Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing for the English soundtrack
• New audio commentary by Tim Lucas, author of Mario Bava: All the Colors of the Dark
• Mill of the Stone Women & The Gothic Body, a new visual essay on the trope of the wax/statue woman in Gothic horror by author and critic Kat Ellinger
• Turned to Stone, a newly edited featurette containing archival interviews with actress Liana Orfei and film historian Fabio Melelli
• A Little Chat with Dr. Mabuse, an archival interview with actor Wolfgang Preiss
• Rare opening titles from the UK release, re-titled “Drops of Blood”
• German opening titles
• US and German theatrical trailers
• Image galleries

DISC 2 – THE FRENCH AND US VERSIONS (LIMITED EDITION EXCLUSIVE)

• Restored original lossless mono French soundtrack for the French version
• Restored original lossless mono English soundtrack for the US version
• Newly translated English subtitles for the French soundtrack
• Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing for the English soundtrack

This is one I have always wanted to see but at that price i'm sure my Mrs would rip off a certain part of my male anatomy and use them as Christmas bobbles.

[Susan Foreman]

NEW UK/US/CA TITLE: Phantom of the Mall: Eric’s Revenge (Limited Edition Blu-ray)

Release date: November 22

Arrow RRP: £25:00

"With numerous interpretations of Gaston Leroux’s classic novel The Phantom of the Opera having been turned out over the years, it was only a matter of time before the slasher genre decided to take a stab at the tale – step forward 1989’s Phantom of the Mall: Eric’s Revenge!

High school sweethearts Eric Matthews and Melody Austin are so in love, but their youthful romance is cut tragically short when Eric apparently dies in a fire that engulfs his family home. One year later and Melody is trying to move on with her life, taking up a job at the newly built Midwood Mall along with her friends. But the mall, which stands on the very site of Eric’s former home, has an uninvited guest – a shadowy, scarred figure which haunts its airducts and subterranean passageways, hellbent on exacting vengeance on the mall’s crooked developers.

Directed by Richard Friedman (Scared Stiff, Doom Asylum), and featuring star turns from Pauly Shore and Morgan Fairchild, Phantom of the Mall: Eric’s Revenge swoops onto Blu-ray™ in an extras-packed edition which proves that Arrow Video’s love for ’80s slasher fare never dies!"

LIMITED EDITION 2-DISC BLU-RAY CONTENTS

• Three versions of the feature: Original Theatrical Cut, TV Cut and bonus Integral Fan Cut!
• High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation
• Original uncompressed mono audio on all cuts
• Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing on all cuts
• 60-page fully-illustrated perfect-bound book featuring new writing by Daniel Budnik and Amanda Reyes
• Large fold-out double-sided poster featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Justin Osbourn
• Six postcard-sized lobby card reproductions
• Limited edition packaging with reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Justin Osbourn

DISC ONE – THE THEATRICAL CUT (BLU-RAY)

• Brand new 2K restoration of the Original Theatrical Cut from original film elements (90 mins)
• Brand new audio commentary with director Richard Friedman, moderated by filmmaker Michael Felsher
• Brand new audio commentary with disc producer Ewan Cant and film historian/author Amanda Reyes
• Shop Til’ You Drop!: The Making of Phantom of the Mall – brand new making-of documentary featuring interviews with director Richard Friedman, screenwriters Scott Schneid and Tony Michelman, actors Derek Rydall and Gregory Scott Cummins, filmmaker Tony Kayden and special make-up effects creator Matthew Mungle
• The Vandals Go to the Mall - an interview with Joe Escalante of The Vandals on the creation of the Phantom of the Mall theme song
• Alternate and Deleted Scenes from the TV Cut
• Domestic and International Trailers
• Image Gallery
• Scott J. Schneid and Tony Michelman's original script and associated special effects storyboards by Alec Gillis and Tom Woodruff, Jr. [BD-ROM Content]

DISC TWO – THE TV & INTEGRAL FAN CUTS (BLU-RAY)

• Brand new 2K restoration of the TV Cut with Standard Definition inserts for the footage unique to this version (89 mins)
• Integral Fan Cut combining footage from both the Original Theatrical and TV Cuts for the ultimate Phantom of the Mall experience! (96 mins)

[nicholasrope]

I'm guessing that Arrow are determined to stop any other distributor from releasing Battle Royale by releasing every version possible.

Phantom Of The Mall is a Film, I would have been all over. However like (seemingly) 90% of retro releases (88, 101, Eureka included) it's not worth £25:00. Hopefully a standard version becomes available.

Also was Eric's Revenge an alternate title because if it was, I'm assuming that the makers of Phantom Of The Opera may have had issues with it?

[Rob4]

Originally Posted by nicholasrope

Also was Eric's Revenge an alternate title because if it was, I'm assuming that the makers of Phantom Of The Opera may have had issues with it?

You can't exert copyright over a single word, in this case 'Phantom', and besides, the makers of any version of Phantom of the Opera can't complain as all versions are based on the book by Gaston Leroux which is in the public domain.

If on the other hand it was nicking songs from the Lloyd Webber version then there would be a case to answer as that will have it's own copyright due to the original material involved.

[Michael Brooke]

It is indeed impossible to copyright a title, which is why John Carpenter was able to release a film called The Fog a few years after the identically-titled James Herbert novel (much to Herbert's chagrin).

However, you can trademark a title, which applies to the likes of Star Wars, Jurassic Park and anything with the names "Harry" and "Potter" in sufficiently close proximity. But trademarking requires proactive effort and expense, and is only granted where there's something obviously unique and lucrative about the property - so I suspect that if Andrew Lloyd Webber were to try to trademark the phrase "Phantom of the...", the relevant trademark registration bodies would basically go "ha ha ha ha ha no." Not least because, as you rightly say, Lloyd Webber wasn't even the originator.

There was a very funny case circa 1993-4 when London Transport launched a campaign aimed at people who park in bus lanes with the slogan "Jurassic Parker" and the same font and roundel as in the film. Universal threatened to sue, as LT were blatantly imitating what as far as they were concerned was a trademarked property... only for LT (who clearly employed savvy lawyers) to say "fine, sue us, but if you do, we'll sue you for nicking the roundel with a bar through it that's demonstrably been identified with London Transport for decades before Michael Crichton and Steven Spielberg were even born. Oh, and there's no way that you're going to be able to demonstrate financial loss [the usual reason for a trademark-related lawsuit], because there obviously wouldn't have been any, so ner on you."

(The original was a bit more legalistic, but that was broadly the gist. Anyway, Universal folded there and then, probably wisely because if it had gone to court the coverage would have been hilarious and they might well have lost.)

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by nicholasrope

Also was Eric's Revenge an alternate title because if it was, I'm assuming that the makers of Phantom Of The Opera may have had issues with it?

Eric's Revenge is part of the title. It's called Phantom of the Mall: Eric's Revenge.

Both Arrow artworks have that title.

[Dave Boy]

I have the Mondo Macabro DVD of 'Mill Of The Stone Women' and that will do just fine. No upgrade for me.

[nicholasrope]

Originally Posted by Michael Brooke

It is indeed impossible to copyright a title, which is why John Carpenter was able to release a film called The Fog a few years after the identically-titled James Herbert novel (much to Herbert's chagrin).

However, you can trademark a title, which applies to the likes of Star Wars, Jurassic Park and anything with the names "Harry" and "Potter" in sufficiently close proximity. But trademarking requires proactive effort and expense, and is only granted where there's something obviously unique and lucrative about the property - so I suspect that if Andrew Lloyd Webber were to try to trademark the phrase "Phantom of the...", the relevant trademark registration bodies would basically go "ha ha ha ha ha no." Not least because, as you rightly say, Lloyd Webber wasn't even the originator.

There was a very funny case circa 1993-4 when London Transport launched a campaign aimed at people who park in bus lanes with the slogan "Jurassic Parker" and the same font and roundel as in the film. Universal threatened to sue, as LT were blatantly imitating what as far as they were concerned was a trademarked property... only for LT (who clearly employed savvy lawyers) to say "fine, sue us, but if you do, we'll sue you for nicking the roundel with a bar through it that's demonstrably been identified with London Transport for decades before Michael Crichton and Steven Spielberg were even born. Oh, and there's no way that you're going to be able to demonstrate financial loss [the usual reason for a trademark-related lawsuit], because there obviously wouldn't have been any, so ner on you."

(The original was a bit more legalistic, but that was broadly the gist. Anyway, Universal folded there and then, probably wisely because if it had gone to court the coverage would have been hilarious and they might well have lost.)

Thanks, I originally thought that if there was something with a similar title with a loose similarity plot wise, then I thought that there could have been a case.

There was a DVD release with just Eric's Revenge as the title. Phantom Of The Mall is a better title.