Two of the best shot-on-video movies I have ever seen, Attack of the Killer Refridgerator and The Hook of Woodland Heights, get a surprisingly nice blu-ray with a ton of special features that span the entire Media House Films filmography.
Release Date: 1990 (video premiere) (Attack of the Killer Refrigerator, The Hook of Woodland Heights) / December 1st, 1992 (Days Before Christmas) / February 1st, 2023 (blu-ray)
Run Time: 16 minutes 5 seconds (Attack of the Killer Refrigerator) / 40 minutes 43 seconds (The Hook of Woodland Heights) / 10 minutes 8 seconds (Days Before Christmas)
Region Code: FREE
Disc Count: 1
Picture: 1080i (1.33:1 aspect ratio) (Attack of the Killer Refrigerator, The Hook of Woodland Heights), 480p (1.33:1 aspect ratio) (Days Before Christmas)
Sound: English LPCM 2.0 (Attack of the Killer Refrigerator) / English Dolby Digital 2.0 (The Hook of Woodland Heights, Days Before Christmas)
Subtitles: English SDH (all films)
Slipcover: Yes (first pressing)
Digital Copy: No
Starring: Lori Regonini, Christina Murphy, Lori Carson, Mark Veau, Michael Savino (Attack of the Killer Refrigerator) / Robert W. Allen, Christine McNamara, Michael Elyanow, David MacWilliams, Keeton Arnett (The Hook of Woodland Heights) / Susan Zizza, Joseph Fristaci, John Riley (Days Before Christmas)
Written by Michael Savino, Mark Veau (Attack of the Killer Refrigerator, The Hook of Woodland Heights, Days Before Christmas)
Directed by Michael Savino (Attack of the Killer Refrigerator, Days Before Christmas) / Michael Savino, Mark Veau (The Hook of Woodland Heights)
Rating: Not Rated (graphic violence and a very tame sex scene) (Attack of the Killer Refrigerator) / Not Rated (strong bloody violence and gore) (The Hook of Woodland Heights) Not Rated (nothing objectionable) (Days Before Christmas)
Picture: 1080i (1.33:1 aspect ratio) (Attack of the Killer Refrigerator, The Hook of Woodland Heights), 480p (1.33:1 aspect ratio) (Days Before Christmas)
Sound: English LPCM 2.0 (Attack of the Killer Refrigerator) / English Dolby Digital 2.0 (The Hook of Woodland Heights, Days Before Christmas)
Subtitles: English SDH (all films)
Slipcover: Yes (first pressing)
Digital Copy: No
Starring: Lori Regonini, Christina Murphy, Lori Carson, Mark Veau, Michael Savino (Attack of the Killer Refrigerator) / Robert W. Allen, Christine McNamara, Michael Elyanow, David MacWilliams, Keeton Arnett (The Hook of Woodland Heights) / Susan Zizza, Joseph Fristaci, John Riley (Days Before Christmas)
Written by Michael Savino, Mark Veau (Attack of the Killer Refrigerator, The Hook of Woodland Heights, Days Before Christmas)
Directed by Michael Savino (Attack of the Killer Refrigerator, Days Before Christmas) / Michael Savino, Mark Veau (The Hook of Woodland Heights)
Rating: Not Rated (graphic violence and a very tame sex scene) (Attack of the Killer Refrigerator) / Not Rated (strong bloody violence and gore) (The Hook of Woodland Heights) Not Rated (nothing objectionable) (Days Before Christmas)
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Poster
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What's It About?
After being defrosted and beaten with a hammer at a college party, a maniacal refrigerator takes revenge on an apartment full of unsuspecting students. One by one they are savagely murdered by this deadly home appliance. (Attack of the Killer Refrigerator)
The campfire tale you heard as a kid comes to life in this late 1980s B-horror movie. After escaping an institution, Mason Crane goes on a reign of terror that the small town of Woodland Heights will never forget. (The Hook of Woodland Heights)
A woman shopping in a mall tries to be nice to people but finds that she has been taken advantage of. (Days Before Christmas)
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Video/Audio
Both of the main features were shot on video so you have to look at the picture quality with that in mind. While the picture quality isn't all that great, it isn't unwatchable either. They look exactly how you think they would. All of the soundtracks for each movie are great with no huge problems.
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Extras/Packaging
Attack with Commentary
Attack of the Killer Refrigerator 2 Trailer (48s, SD, 1.33:1) This looks like a lot of fun.
Days Before Christmas (10m 8s, HD, 1.33:1) This is a short that was made with the hope that HBO would buy it up. That didn't happen and the film was shown at a film festival before disappearing.
Days with Commentary (10m 8s)
The VERY FIRST Attack of the Killer Refrigerator (44s, SD, 1.33:1) This is a preview of things to come in the main short.
Hooked On You Music Video (featuring The Heartbeats) (4m 24s, SD, 1.33:1) This is a music video for the song that opens The Hook of Woodland Heights
Media House Films: Defrosted (52m 10s, HD, 1.78:1) This a doc that covers the entire life of Media House Films. We get what amounts to making-of featurettes for every film Media House Films made with tons of great stories. If you are going to watch any of the special features found on this disc, make sure you watch this one. Definitely worth it.
Snapper: The Man-Eating Turtle Movie That Never Got Made (29m 34s, HD, 1.78:1) This is a fascinating look at a film that was partially shot but never finished.
The Hook of Woodlands Heights: A Look Behind the Scenes (50m 2s, SD, 1.33:1) Here we have a nice look behind the scenes of the making of The Hook of Woodland Heights through fly-on-the-wall footage.
The Hook with Commentary
The Hook Documentary (27m 51s, SD, 1.33:1) This is a making-of that was produced for a local cable channel. We get interviews with the filmmakers, fly-on-the-wall BTS footage, footage from the premiere, and host segments. If nothing else, this is a time capsule to a time when you could get people to talk about your shot-on-video movie without any type of irony or snark.
The packaging is very nice. We get a nice, thick slipcover that features new artwork for ATTACK on one side and new artwork for HOOK on the other side. The clear blu-ray case features the classic VHS artwork with some inner artwork which looks to be new artwork as well. The blu-ray disc artwork features the classic VHS artwork.
The only complaint that I have about the slipcover is the spine. The way the slipcover is set up, you can use either cover as your main cover. This is always welcome as you are given a choice. However, the spines are wrong. If you use ATTACK as the main cover, you get HOOK as the title on the spine and visa versa. I don't like this but it is what it is. This is a minor complaint but one I wanted to bring up for people who want to purchase this release to know.
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Overall
I was apprehensive about both of these films but I am happy to report both of these films are pretty damn good. ATTACK is really short running about 15 minutes and the time is used well. There are some issues with the way events unfold like "How does no one hear the screams from the people being killed?" These issues are not really a big deal because the film is fun. HOOK is better than ATTACK in almost every way. This is a slasher film with the killer running through the woods with a hook for a hand, picking people off one by one. The film moves at a fast pace and is surprisingly professional. Both of these films are worth checking out.
The blu-ray, from Terror Vision, is great. The picture and sound are the best they can be but it is the special features that are worth checking out. We get three commentary tracks, one for each film on the disc. We get behind the scenes for HOOK with a cable access show being the coolest. There is a doc about a film that was partially shot but not finished. We also get a doc that covers the entire history of the production company that made the films in this set. This release is so much fun and I can not recommend it highly enough.
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Extras/Menus
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Film
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Packaging
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