Adrenalin: Fear the Rush (Ronin Flix) Blu-ray Review

Ronin Flix gives us another THE VIDEO STORE DAYS classic with Adrenalin: Fear the Rush, an unfairly gimped film from Albert Pyun.

Studio: Ronin Flix
Release Date: November 26th, 1996 (theatrical)

March 17th, 2021 (blu-ray)
Run Time: 1 hour 16 minutes 13 seconds
Region Code: A
Picture: 1080p (2.35:1 aspect ratio)
Sound: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0

English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
Subtitles: English SDH
Slipcover: No
Digital Copy: No
Starring: Christopher Lambert, Natasha Henstridge, Elizabeth Barondes, and Andrew Divoff

Written by Albert Pyun
Directed by Albert Pyun
Rating: R (gruesome violence and gore, and for strong language)

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Poster

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What's It About?

This pulse-pounding action-adventure stars Christopher Lambert (Highlander) as a police officer locked in a desperate, do or die race against time! Teamed with a rookie cop (Natasha Henstridge - Species), he must quickly track down the savage killer who threatens the world. When the chase leads to the killer's dungeon, the hunters find they have become the hunter! (This is from the back of the box and I kept the typo as is.)

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Film Review

Back during THE VIDEO STORE DAYS of the mid-1990's, every time I would rent a film that was released by Dimension Films, I would see a trailer for ADRENALIN: FEAR THE RUSH. The film looked like it would be ok. It had Christopher Lambert from HIGHLANDER and Natasha Henstridge from SPECIES in it so there was a bit of star power to it. I rented the film when it came out and watched about ten minutes of it and turned it off. I couldn't really tell what was going on and I had that same feeling watching the film for this review. Have you ever had that feeling that you don't know what is happening in a film despite the fact that the film has explained it to you? That is what happened here. They give you the basics of the plot and then throw a bunch of scenes at you expecting you to get what's going on. Characters show up without any type of introduction as well as characters disappearing for a big chunk of the film only to reappear towards the end without any explanation of where they have been.

The action on display here is pretty impressive. Albert Pyun has always been a good director and he shows that off here. There is a scene where a characters is shot multiple times by the killer and the impact of the bullet hits is just brutal. I also thought that the film had an intensity in some scenes that I thought would have worked if it had been kept up through the entire film. I'll bet that most of these complaints are not present in the original cut of the film.

ADRENALIN: FEAR THE RUSH is a good sci-fi/action/horror film that should have been released in it's original form. The fact that the Weinsteins did this to so many films is disgusting and I hope that one day we get the original version here in the States. I can happily recommend this film. Just know that it is a gimped version of the film, but it is still enjoyable.

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Video/Audio

ADRENALIN: FEAR THE RUSH comes to us from Ronin Flix and they have given us a pretty good transfer. The first thing you will notice is the detail. Detail in clothing, skin, and background are all high. Blacks are inky and shadow detail is impressive. Both audio tracks included here are good with dialogue sounding nice.

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Extras

All we get is the film's trailer. I would have loved to have gotten the original version of the film or even the version that Albert Pyun has been working on. I also would have loved to have gotten an interview with Pyun. He always has great stories to tell and I am sure there are some good ones for this film.

Trailer (1m 39s, HD, 1.90:1)

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Overall

Watching ADRENALIN: FEAR THE RUSH was a fun one. The film is clearly gimped with characters disappearing and then reappearing and the film just kind of ending. What is here is a fun time and I would love to see what we in the States have been missing. Ronin Flix did a good job with this blu-ray. Picture and sound are both excellent, but the lack of special features is a bit disappointing. I would have loved to have seen the original version of the film before the Weinsteins got their hands on it, but I guess I am going to have to find an import for that. This is still a worthwhile release.

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