Death Game BluRay Review

From The Grindhouse Cinema Database

Revision as of 17:44, 9 September 2022 by Pete (talk | contribs)

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The Film

Peter S. Traynor’s DEATH GAME is a movie I had only seen once several years ago in a terrible, blurry VHS quality version. Recently I received the new BluRay edition from our friends at Grindhouse Releasing. First off, I have to say that the 1080p transfer looks absolutely gorgeous. It really was like seeing the movie for the first time. The cinematography by David Worth (who also edited it AND did the voiceover for star Seymour Cassel!) just makes the movie so visually striking and lush.

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The story, which takes place in the home invasion subgenre (Fight For Your Life, House on The Edge of the Park) provides quite a twist. Instead of male psychos, this time it's two beautiful women (Colleen Camp, Sondra Locke) who are the intruders with Seymour Cassel (Faces, Minnie & Moskowitz, Rushmore) as their victim. The mood between the three main characters moves from innocent to sensual and erotic to maniacal and violent. The two women are revealed to be out for a kind of retribution for events in their past. What begins as two women looking for shelter turns into a sadistic attack on the patriarchy.

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While I think parts of the movie work well, other parts get a bit over the top and silly. That said, Colleen Camp and Sondra Locke are the stars of the movie. They are on full blast as Jackson and Donna, the lovers/psychotic hellions. Regardless of any flaws it has, it definitely holds your attention and keeps you on the edge of your seat throughout the running time. One aspect that is really important to realize about the film is that it was made in about 2 or 3 weeks in a small set with a very low budget yet looks just amazing as any Hollywood studio film. It makes you wonder what Peter Traynor might’ve done next if he had continued working in film with bigger budgets. It turns out that this was a bad experience for him (including an on set battle with Seymour Cassel) and he moved on to other things because of it.

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The new Grindhouse Releasing BluRay comes with some great special features like two audio commentaries, one with Eli Roth (who remade the movie as Knock Knock) and star Colleen Camp, and other with writer/producer Larry Spiegel & DP/Editor David Worth. In addition there’s interviews with cast & crew, trailers and more. I now own almost all of Grindhouse Releasing’s titles and this is another gem in the collection I would highly recommend to film geeks.

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BluRay Review

PICTURE: Presented in (2:35:1) 1080p High Definition - As far as video transfers go, this is another stunner. The original Death Game video that had been released was bottom of the barrel. Grindhouse Releasing found the original negative to breathe new life into this forgotten, underseen 70s thriller. Now film fans can see it the way it was meant to be seen. In gleaming high definition with vibrant colors and photography that was so good it got David Worth notice from major filmmakers like Don Siegel and Clint Eastwood.

AUDIO:

SPECIAL FEATURES

  • AUDIO COMMENTARY with Eli Roth and Colleen Camp -
  • AUDIO Commentary with Larry Spiegel & David Worth -
  • INTERVIEWS with Director Peter Traynor, star Colleen Camp, Larry Spiegel, David Worth -
  • AUDIO INTERVIEW with Sondra Locke'-
  • EXTENSIVE STILL GALLERIES & GRINDHOUSE RELEASING THEATRICAL TRAILERS
  • THE FINAL WORD:
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