Review: 40th Anniversary 4K UHD-HDR Standard Edition Of ‘Re-Animator’

Forty years is a long time! And, as you can expect, for collectors of fright films on physical media, “anniversary” editions are a big deal! Questions abound: What’s new? Given the limitations of the source material (as much as we hate to admit it, many of our 80’s favorites were done on the cheap, this applies to film stock too) does it look any better? So, it is with some trepidation that I went into the 40^th Anniversary 4K UDH-HDR Standard Edition of the beloved 1985 classic, Re-Animator.

Synopsis:

After an odd new medical student arrives on campus, a dedicated local and his girlfriend become involved in bizarre experiments centering around the re-animation of dead tissue.”

Note: I am reviewing the “standard edition,” not the deluxe box set with all of the collectible cards, books, and bobbleheads.

Do I really need to cover ground well-traveled? Any self-respecting horror fan should know this film front-to-back (I’m not gatekeeping, I swear!). Widely regarded as a classic amongst fans of horror with a thick, blackly comic edge, Re-Animator was the film that introduced generations of horror fans to the triumvirate of Lovecraftian terror: director Stuart Gordon (Dolls), Jeffrey Combs (Pit and the Pendulum), and the timeless Barbara Crampton (Chopping Mall), who would go on to collaborate in even more Lovecraft adaptations like From Beyond, and Castle Freak.

Re-Animator is definitely a “Top 10” film for me, so, obviously, I was able to snag a copy of the 2017 Arrow Video limited box before they got ridiculously expensive, and I cherish it. But, with 4K Ultra being the next medium to have, I was very curious about the new version from Eagle Rock & Ignite Films. Starting off with newly commissioned artwork that is a very cool riff on the original poster art, the “standard” edition comes in a standard black 4K Ultra case, with two discs: the unrated feature, with newly produced bonus features on the 4K Blu-ray, and a standard Blu with the “integral” version, with added scenes, and “legacy” bonus material previously available on the Arrow release.

I know what you’re thinking: “why no ‘integral’ version in 4K?”. Well, if you’ve seen that version, you’ll know that some of the additional footage from that particular cut was culled from VHS quality work print footage, and would it really make sense to upscale that, even if it was possible? I mean, there’s no tracking wheel on my 4K deck, that I know of.

The new restoration (approved by producer Brian Yuzna) looks immaculate! Blacker blacks than you’ve ever seen, images as sharp as Herbert West’s verbal jabs, and lush, vibrant gore! I was pleasantly surprised that a film I adore so much finally looks this good! Great work! The new bonus features also provide some compelling viewing: a new 40^th anniversary discussion with Crampton (who has to be a vampire, she hasn’t aged at all), Combs, and Yuzna, an interview with editor Lee Percy, a legacy piece on the film, an interview with the late Gordon’s wife and coconspirator Carolyn Purdy-Gordon, a look back at the musical adaptation, and an interesting short documentary about Gordon’s theater company from 1977, among a few other pieces on the film. This set, even in the bare-bones version, is stacked and packed with hours of stuff for Re-Animator aficionados!

Is it worth the “double dip”? As an owner of the still fabulous 2017 set, my answer is a resounding: YES! A super restoration of a classic film, loaded with everything you’d ever want to know about the making of, and the legacy of Gordon’s 1985 masterpiece of subversive horror/comedy.

 

Ignite Films/Eagle Rock Pictures’ 4K Ultra release of Re-Animator is available now from fine retailers.