The Return of the Living Dead [Blu-ray/DVD] [1985]

Loved the new cover, I already had the movie but for $7, blue ray, and with extras it was totally a steal. One of my favorite B movie classics.

Classic zombie movie and start of the return of the living dead franchise series, very awesome movie

A zombie flick from the 80's... How can we go wrong? Dan O'Bannon the co-writer of " Alien " directs this amazingly humorous take on the Zombie genre way before we chuckled at films like " Shaun of the Dead." I must say firstly, I am an avid fan of this genre.. Maybe I can chock this up to being a teenager when this film hit the scene making this more near & dear to my heart but I truly feel that this film has something for all ages, except the very young. Usually I like my " End of the World" zombie flicks to stay on track with a serious tone, but this is one of those films that mesh Horror, Zombies & Humor together brilliantly with great performances from old-school stalwart performers, Clu Gulager, James Karen & Don Calfa! Even the teen actors performed admirably as the punk rockers, preps & new wavers who as a crew end up in an old forgotten cemetery, where all the fun begins. I see " The Return of the Living Dead " as nothing short of a classic horror film from the 80's, back before CGI took over with Zombies that have more character, individualism & believability with movements that appear more human, since that's exactly whats under the makeup! Just a fun movie to watch, so grab this Blu-Ray, get the popcorn popping & hold on for a fun scary time! Video (AVC@24MBPS 1.85:1 enhanced. 25GB Single Layer) In all honesty the video picture presented is only average as far as high definition is concerned. The image is soft but varies from scene to scene. Colors are good but not excellent. Indoor darker shots grain is prevalent, blacks could be better with crushing visible. Flesh tones are really good showing alot of detail that will not be scene in standard DVD versions. Is this a step up from standard? Yes but only barely, if someone has an excellent up-conversion DVD player they might want to sit this one out & wait for the 3rd HD reissue. If you do not own this on DVD, then step up! Audio (5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio - 2.0 Mono) Originally in Mono the DTS-HD Master 5.1 Audio is nice, but front heavy with few attempts at ambient rear field sounds. Mainly the Musical tracks command the rear field, but hiss or distortion were not present, very clean sounding.. Also a 2.0 English & French soundtrack is included on this disc. Extra's (480i unless noted) “Return of the Living Dead: The Dead Have Risen” is a 20 ½-minute reminiscence by the stars of the film looking back on its fame and success. “The Decade of Darkness” is a 23 ½-minute discussion of the horror movie explosion of the 1980s with film historians, directors like John Landis and Joe Dante, and Elvira (cracking wise) offering opinions on their favorite films, directors, and stars. “Designing the Dead” finds director Dan O'Bannon and production designer William Stout discussing their careers and in particular their work on this film. The featurette runs 13 ½ minutes. Two theatrical trailers are available for viewing, both in 1080p. The “bloody” one runs 1 ¼ minutes while the “bloodier” one runs 2 ¾ minutes. For a bit of fun, the viewer can turn on the zombie subtitle stream which offers translations of the zombies’ moans and groans and growls when they appear on the screen. FINAL THOUGHTS Bottom Line is if you have this on DVD & are pleased with the Standard image up-converted onto your wide screen then give it some time & I think we will see a re-issue of this film with a newly remastered print, revealing much more detail then what is presented on this Collector's edition, because the soft focus might disappoint most videophiles but to the average Blu-Ray viewer i highly recommend this release you will love this Zombie Classic!

80's B horror movie that will give you some laughs.

Return of the Living Dead is one of the best zombie movies made, if not THE best. Let's begin with what people don't recognize enough about RotLD that have become popular among Z films today. It was the first movie that introduced brains as being associated with zombies. It also was the first to stray from Romero's shambling ghouls to "runners," (sorry, 28 Days, RotLD did it 2 decades earlier). RotLD was also an early "meta" film, recognizing Night of the Living Dead as a movie seen by the characters, then spinning it as "based on a true story". The story is a top-notch (and my favorite,) horror-comedy, with a screenplay (and directed by,) Alien's writer, Dan O'Bannon. The soundtrack, (while still missing "Dead Beat's Dance" from the theatrical/ VHS release, is a punk rock masterpiece, and for this special edition, tracks were remastered from the original source recordings, making it sound as great as it's ever been. Along with a restored audio (MGM mucked with voices throughout the years,) RotLD SE is the best sounding version ever released. It also features several new commentary tracks- 5 or 6 total. Video-wise, once again Scream Factory delivers. A new 2K scan that lovingly enriches colors and blacks without removing the "shot on film" feel from 30+ years ago. Truly, outside of maybe The Thing, this might be their best upgrade they've done. The real treasure here is the RotLD workprint, which is 20 minutes longer. For the first time, you can watch the original print they worked from to see what was changed from here to the final release. Please note that the workprint that was discovered was of largely poor quality, (think finding an old family 8mm reel,) and not restored, so while this is a unique opportunity, it's not anything more than an opportunity. For fans of RotLD, and film buffs, it's a unique, precious goldmine of an opportunity. For those that can't see the beauty of the chance through tons of grain, it may not be as much of a thrill. There's 2 discs here, filled with all of the MGM special edition extras and many, many more new to the Scream Factory release. Even owning the previous MGM release, RotLD is an incredible film. Unlike many re-releases by the original studios, Scream Factory always treats their shot at a re-release as a golden opportunity to treat fans to a real reason to double-dip. RotLD is no different, and a must-buy for fans.

Initially written by John Russo as a serious sequel to George Romero's Night of the Living Dead, director Dan O'Bannon took the original idea and turned it into this fun, gory and humorous zombie classic. Two workers at a surplus store (one played wonderfully by James Karen) accidentally unleash a zombie apocalypse after kicking a U.S. military canister unleashing a toxic gas that revives the dead and causes a downpour of acid rain. The transfer on MGM's Blu-ray is a solid one albeit a bit uneven with some scenes featuring faithful grain levels and some falling victim to moderate noise reduction that takes away the definition a little. The sound is solid although the U.S. release is still lacking a few music tracks that are being held back due to copyright issues. The extras are solid enough as with a number of the 80's Horror films released by MGM. Overall a good release of a classic that is currently sitting at a sweet price. Recommended.

This review will focus more on the packaging than the movie. Just know that the movie itself is 5 stars — a classic with humor, gore and great performances. The steelbook is part of a Dia de los Muertos themed wave from MGM for Halloween 2018. It’s an ambitious concept that lends itself to very colorful designs. Of the 12 or so tiles, the RotLD steel is one of the few successful realizations of the design concept. We see a striking image of a single zombie with the title artfully worked into the creature’s mandible and throat. It’s not overly done and you don’t lose the identity of the movie to the design concept and vice versa. If you’re lucky like I was, you’ll find this on the shelf without any dings, dents or spine slashes caused by boxcutters that can do often plague steelbook releases. I highly recommend this movie, and this steelbook design!

I waited a long time to get this movie. Finally got it,definitely a favorite of mines for years. If you like your horror movies with some comedy,I highly recommend it.