If an ancient demon rampaging through the Irish countryside sounds like your cup of tea, Arrow Video’s Blu-ray release of Clive Barker’s RAWHEAD REX is a must-have.
With a strong cult following, this is a much-loved horror film that ticks all the right boxes: picturesque location, an angry demon, locals being eviscerated by the dozen, and good old fashioned good vs. evil. It’s a fun slice of 80s gore.
Written by Clive Barker (HELLRAISER, NIGHTBREED) and directed by George Pavlou who directed the 1993 movie LITTLE DEVILS: THE BIRTH.
RAWHEAD REX stars David Dukes (Gods and Monsters, A Little Romance, And the Band Played On), Kelly Piper (MANIAC ) (1980)
Hugh O’Conor (Chocolat, My Left Foot, The Three Musketeers, The Young Poisoner’s Handbook) and Niall Toibin (Far and Away, TV’s The Irish R.M., TV’s Ballykissangel).
Arrow Video will be releasing this movie in the U.K. on Blu-Ray 14th May 2018 and is available to pre-order now on their website HERE and also available to pre-order on Amazon http://amzn.to/2I936gl
Synopsis:
SOMEONE HAS AWAKENED HIM
Adapted for the screen by acclaimed horror writer Clive Barker (HELLRAISER, Nightbreed) from his short story of the same name, RAWHEAD REX sees a hulking, ancient demon tearing a bloody swathe across the Irish countryside.
When an unsuspecting farmer pulls up a stone column embedded in a barren field, he accidentally unleashes hell by freeing RAWHEAD REX – a hulking monster that has been trapped there for thousands of years. With the seemingly unstoppable demon rampaging through the local village, American historian Howard Hallenbeck is faced with the task of putting Rawhead back in the ground for good.
The first of several films to be adapted from Barker’s seminal Books of Blood series, RAWHEAD REX has garnered a strong cult following over the years – now clawing its way to the surface in a stunning new 4K restoration from the original camera negative.
When you boil it all down, RAWHEAD REX is a fun horror film. While the monster effects may not quite have stood the test of time, it simply doesn’t matter because it’s such an enjoyable horror flick. As old Rexy charges through the Irish countryside, in equal parts killing people and encouraging others to worship him as a god, the audience gets to thoroughly enjoy themselves as grue spills left right and centre, and David Dukes’ Howard Hallenbeck desperately seeks a way to banish the monster once and for all.
And while many of us remember watching RAWHEAD REX on grainy VHS back in the 80s and 90s, now you can see it like never before in a gorgeous 4K restoration from the original camera negative.
One last note on the film. Despite it having such a cult following, Clive Barker was famously unhappy with the finished film adaptation of RAWHEAD REX. It’s for this reason that he decided to take the helm and direct HELLRAISER himself. So without Rexy here, the landscape of horror could be very different…
Special Features:
- Brand new 4K restoration from the original camera negative
- High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation
- Original Uncompressed Stereo and 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
- Audio commentary with director George Pavlou, moderated by author Stephen Thrower
- Call Me Rawhead, an interview with actor Heinrich von Bünau
- What the Devil Hath Wrought, an interview with actor Ronan Wilmot
- Rawhead FX, featurette bringing together interviews with creature effects artists Peter Mackenzie Litten and John Schroonraad, special effects supervisor Gerry Johnson, second unit cameraman Sean Corcoran and make-up artist Rosie Blackmore
- Interview with cameraman Sean Corcoran
- Rawhead Rising, artist Stephen R. Bissette on the aborted Rawhead Rex graphic novel adaptation
- Animated behind-the-scenes image gallery
- Original Trailer
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Wes Benscoter
First pressing only: Collector’s booklet featuring writing on the film by Kat Ellinger
Details:
Language: English
Subtitles: English SDH
Aspect Ratio: 1.85
Audio: Stereo / 5.1
Colour
Discs: 1