Tweet
2021 was not a great year for a lot of us, but just the same, we here at Rock! Shock! Pop! were once again lucky enough to review a lot of the really great releases that have come out in the last twelve months. Continuing the tradition started a few years ago, it's once again time to look back at the best of the best.
So without further ado, here are our favorite titles that we were able to write up this year, ranked in no particular order and based on the ever important mix of entertainment value and quality of the release itself.
Rock! Shock! Pop's Top 25 Releases Of 2021:
A true classic of the Hong Kong Cat III exploitation era, Vinegar Syndrome gave Ebola Syndrome a ridiculously strong UHD/Blu-ray release. The film looks better than it ever has on home video up to this point, much better than the already nice DVD release from Discotek Media from 2007, and it carries over all of the extras from that release and throws some new ones into the mix as well. Consider this one essential.
Boardinghouse is essential for anyone with an affinity for psychotronic horror nonsense or SOV cult film oddities. AGFA have really rolled out the red carpet for this one with their two disc Blu-ray edition, loading it up with three different cuts of the film, a bonus feature film in the form of Sally & Jess and a whole lot more! This might not be one you buy to show off your handy home theater system, but those in the know will understand that the content here is worth its weight in weird movie gold.
Demons I & Demons II both remain a lot of crazy, gory fun, each film really going for the jugular! This UHD set from Synapse Films presents both films in gorgeous presentations with really strong audio and a great selection of extra features both old and new, all wrapped up in a very nice package. Highly recommended!
The Frenchman's Garden is Paul Naschy at his best, a very well-made thriller with some really strong acting and excellent direction. Mondo Macabro's Blu-ray release is really strong, presenting this rarely seen and underappreciated thriller in very nice shape and with a nice selection of extra features as well.
Unique, quite tense and really well acted from a terrific cast, Dead & Buried is a great slice of esoteric horror movie movie fun and Blue Underground's UHD debut continues their trend of terrific 4k transfers that, when combined with a nice selection of extras old and new, makes this an excellent package for fans of the film.
Vinegar Syndrome's Blu-ray release of Champagne And Bullets, which is limited to 6,000 copies, will make fans of John De Hart's amazing film shimmy slide with happiness! Not only does it include the two video versions of the film but it also offers the original version newly restored with a commentary and an interview with the man himself that explores and explains the bizarre history of one of the most amazing B-movies you'll ever lay eyes on. Highest possible recommendation!
The Good, The Band And The Ugly is rightly considered one of the greatest films ever made - it's tense, exciting, dramatic and at times darkly comic. It's beautifully shot, wonderfully acted and its score is nothing short of iconic. While some might lament the fact that the extended cut isn't here, all of the footage from that cut is included. While we don't get anything new in the way of extra features and the audio would appear to mirror the past Blu-ray edition, the 4k transfer looks a lot better than what we've had before. Some may not want to double dip (let's face it, this movie has been released a LOT) but those looking for the best picture quality available? At the time of this writing, this is definitely it.
Santa Sangre is, like most of Jodoworksy's work, tough to sum up but it's a beautiful, challenging, moving and at times horrifying picture that defies genre conventions and audience expectations alike. A film like no other, it's an impressive work of art that rewards repeat viewings and holds up remarkably well. Severin's UHD/Blu-ray combo release is a thing of beauty, presenting the film in a beautiful presentation and with a massive trove of extra features. Consider this one essential.
Walking The Edge is gritty mix of action and suspense as well as some well-handled drama and moments of character study highlighted by an excellent performance from Forster and a memorably sleazy turn from Spinell. Fun City Editions' Blu-ray roll out is a good one, presenting this cult classic in excellent shape and with a strong selection of supplements to accompany it.
The Dead Zone has been long overdue for a proper, special edition Blu-ray release and Shout! Factory has stepped up to the plate and delivered. The presentation quality is excellent and the supplements extensive. The movie itself holds up well as one of the best adaptations of Stephen King's work and one of Christopher Walken's finest moments.
Deadlock is great stuff, a tense and exciting picture with some great cinematography and even better performances. Sunkultur's done an excellent job bringing this unsung gem to UHD and Blu-ray with a beautiful presentation and some pretty strong extra features as well. Here's hoping for more domestic releases from Subkultur in 2022!
Le Magnifique is a legitimately great film, just so much fun to watch. The fantasy sequences are hilarious and the 'real world' moments also very funny, but in a different way. Belmondo, who we lost earlier this year, and Bisset are both great in their lead roles and the supporting cast are really strong too. Kino's Blu-ray looks decent if not reference quality and the commentary is very good but the strength of the film makes this one a must see. Belmondo forever!
Severin Film's Blu-ray release of Nasty Habits: The Nunsploitation Collection is a good one, presenting four of the better entries from this most notorious of subgenres completely uncut and with a pretty solid array of extra features as well. Hot nuns kind of rule.
Shatter Dead isn't the type of SOV splatter film you put on with a bunch of friends for a beer-fueled movie night despite the fact that it does not shy away from exploitation at all (in fact, at times the movie wallows in it). The movie is much more of a pensive, thought provoking piece and as such, it stands out from the pack in a pretty big way. Saturn's Core has done a nice job bringing the movie to Blu-ray with a presentation that stays true to the movie's SOV origins and a pretty nice selection of extra features both old and new. This is a pretty stacked disc for a very unique film.
How very cool to have this oddity rescued from obscurity! The vast majority of New York Ninja really does feel like an authentic eighties ninja movie despite the fact that it was put together only recently. The end result? It's a lot of fun, a crazy mix of action, colorful characters, awkward comedy and nonsense with some great footage of New York City and some impressive stunts and fight sequences. Vinegar Syndrome's two-disc special edition Blu-ray is absolutely stacked with extra features and presents the film in beautiful shape. Highly recommended, this movie is a blast!
Arrow has done an excellent job with their release of Mill Of The Stone Women, presenting the picture in four different versions, each looking and sounding far better than it ever has on disc in North America before. The set also features some great extra features that will certainly add to your appreciation of the movie. As to the film itself, it's truly a classic slice of Italian gothic horror and a worthy addition to the home video library of any fan of classic horror.
Severin's release of The Eurocrypt Of Christopher Lee Collection is a winner, offering up a great selection of the storied actor's work in Europe, each film in an impressive presentation, along with an excellent assortment of extra features. The movies vary in quality a bit, of course, but everything included on these discs is definitely worthwhile if you're a fan of Lee's and the picture quality here leaves past editions in the dust. We get a great upgrade on Sadism, the TV series is a great obscurity and interesting to finally see and the eighth disc full of exclusive extras and the packaging all add a lot of value to the set. Highly recommended!
The 2021 version of Candyman was a pleasant surprise. In an era where older properties are so often brought back but without the care they deserve, this picture proved to be smart, tense and engrossing. Universal's Blu-ray release presents the film with an excellent presentation and a nice array of extras.
Frankenstein's Daughter is an exemplary piece of shlock, a nicely paced B-movie populated with some fun performances, memorably odd make up work and a few unforgettable set pieces. The Film Detective has done a nice job bringing this one to Blu-ray with a decent presentation and some quality extra features as well.
As an adaptation of Robert Crumb stories, Fritz The Cat isn't much to write home about but as a bizarre counter-culture artifact of the early seventies, it remains a seminal work just as likely to stir controversy today as it was when released back in 1972. Scorpion's Blu-ray release looks decent and sounds quite good, and the commentary that serves as the primary extra on the disc is definitely worth listening to.
The best release of the year overall, however, is Severin's massive The Dungeon Of Andy Milligan Collection, a release so monumental we had to review it in five parts. The set is an excellent representation of the late director's work. It's as erratic and unhinged as Milligan himself was, but despite the idiosyncrasies with the man's cinematic output even his lesser efforts are somehow very watchable. This set mixes the good with the bad, but you want that with Milligan, right? Overall, it's a great release that offers up a fine selection of the director's output in as reasonably good shape as we can realistically expect and a nice array of extra feature as well. Highly recommended, so long as you know what you're getting into…
My list, of those I've bought or reviewed this year…
The Dungeon of Andy Milligan (Severin)
I Start Counting! (BFI)
Born for Hell (Severin)
The Living Dead at the Manchester Morgue (Ediciones 79)
The Great Silence (Eureka)
Tombs of the Blind Dead (Gabita Barbieri)
After Dark My Sweet (Carlotta)
The Parallax View (Criterion)
Vengeance Trails (Arrow)
Backtrack (Carlotta)