The Arrow Thread

[Michael Brooke]

Originally Posted by J Harker

Its all subjective though isn't it at the end of the day.
Say hyperthetically i was Arrows one and only customer. And they said we are going to put out exclusive restorations of The Burbs and Withnail and I. Packed with features. I'd be chuffed. I was in fact. They tell me to bare with them, there'll be more culty niche stuff coming but for now we need to make some serious money on these bigger more mainstream titles. I say yeah great. Then they plough said profits into Borowczyk and Nekromantik.
I'm disappointed because i don't care about this stuff and feel its a waste of money that i would rather them spend on say a Blind Dead Collection or a Phantasm Boxset or a few John Carpenter titles.
And every one of us will feel different about what they do and don't release.

Of course, which is why hypothetical arguments about "one and only customers" are a bit pointless. Not least because in order to be able to fund ambitious restoration projects, Arrow needs to broaden rather than narrow its appeal. Hence the wider range of titles.

But I'd be curious to know if there has really been much of a dip in actual numbers of so-called Euro cult titles (or direct US equivalents) - or whether the numbers have remained broadly similar but the overall number of releases has increased. Has anyone actually sat down and worked it out?

Incidentally, for what it's worth, I couldn't personally be less interested in Nekromantik, and wasn't at all disappointed that the only disc I was asked to QC was the soundtrack CD - but I certainly recognise its historical/cultural significance (and therefore the strong rationale for doing it), and am delighted that it's going down so well with its fan base.

[Michael Brooke]

Originally Posted by J Harker

Nightmare City?

Of the announced/confirmed titles, Day of Anger, Dr Jekyll, The Long Good Friday, Mona Lisa - or at least those are my projects revolving around in-house original-neg restorations.

Which itself shows how things have radically changed: in 2012 there was just one in-house restoration (Zombie Flesh Eaters, in 2013 there were three (Time Bandits, The Fury, Cinema Paradiso), but then things started going through the roof.

[Boo Radley]

I'm still in shock that they got Nekromantik through at all, so kudoo's to them for that.

(Hard line break) So what I'm wanting to know is are they going to release any more Buttgereit in the coming year? Any info on this....??

[Michael Brooke]

I can't comment on unannounced titles, either to confirm or deny - sorry!

Not least because a decision on more Buttgereit would depend heavily on sales of the first one, which has only just been released.

[J Harker]

Wasn't a hypothetical (thanks for the spellcheck) arguement as such Michael, more trying to negate what might otherwise be read as criticism. Simply an expression of my own feelings on the matter and a means of expressing that i fully appreciate everyone here will feel differently. As for wheeling out Borowczyk out well i think its obvious you do that because you're a big fan and are justly very proud of what you managed to achieve with Arrows releases.

[Michael Brooke]

Originally Posted by J Harker

As for wheeling out Borowczyk out well i think its obvious you do that because you're a big fan and are justly very proud of what you managed to achieve with Arrows releases.

I'm a big fan of lots of people, but this particular filmmaker happens to be not only an ongoing project (and I very much hope Dr Jekyll won't be the last one), and a perfect illustration of what can be achieved by breaking with the convention that independent labels can generally only tackle titles for which existing rightsholder-created video masters are available.

And it's this last point that's the important one - and in this respect the Borowczyk releases are arguably the best current illustrations of what Arrow's current business model can produce, because they'd have been off limits until very recently. (And not just to Arrow: the BFI originally developed the project but ultimately baulked at the costs.)

I could of course use Mario Bava as another ongoing example, but I only worked on those releases (if at all) in a QC capacity, so I'm far less intimately involved with them.

[The Reaper Man@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by Make Them Die Slowly

Cult films aren't just horror films, some are wildly popular films but still have cult followings. Just look at the loons who dress up as nuns for sing-a-long showing of "The Sound of Music".

Or the people who don blonde wigs and nakedly thump walls!

Now that's CULT!



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[plasterface]

Originally Posted by The Reaper Man@Cult Labs

Or the people who don blonde wigs and nakedly thump walls!

Now that's CULT!



Metacafe - Online Video Entertainment - Free video clips for your enjoyment

what a bunch of cults

[Nosferatu@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by J Harker

But it does seem whenever it is suggested Arrow have moved away from cult movies and towards the mainstream someone wheels Borowczyk out. With respect to the guy and his films i can't be the only one who isn't the least bit interested?

If someone asked me for a list of five cult films, Withnail and I would definitely be one of them.

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by Nosferatu@Cult Labs

If someone asked me for a list of five cult films, Withnail and I would definitely be one of them.

That has thread idea potential.